


The Eye of the Moon

by Ojikant (amadre)



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Agoraphobia, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bad rapping, F/M, Gen, Happy Ending, Mystery, Other, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Realistic, Tragedy, discussion of extreme violence in chapter 10, everyone needs some chamomile tea with honey and a very long nap, implied sexual content in Chapter 12, only the smallest barest dash of guz/lusamine bc lusamine doesnt deserve bugboy in the slightest, romance is there but isn't the focus
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-15
Updated: 2017-09-21
Packaged: 2018-09-24 14:05:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 29,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9750542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amadre/pseuds/Ojikant
Summary: The International Police have moved them from region to region, in an increasingly desperate attempt to keep them safe. When they are relocated to Alola, Moon is 12, has never gone on a Pokemon journey, and has no intention of changing that. However, Hala and Kukui see at a glance the nearly frightening amount of potential that lays hidden inside of her. She has never had the chance to truly live, but when it's given, she lives the only way she knows how--with determination, drive, and a fire that refuses to be put out.Tags will be updated as story progresses. Rating subject to change. Spoilers for the entirety of Sun/Moon.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fic I've ever written and NGL I'm hella nervous about it. I'm also trying to get used to how AO3 works--if there's anything you think should be in the tags, or if my formatting shits the bed, let me know. 
> 
> I'm not watching the anime, and some characters in game are woefully underdeveloped, so there's almost certainly going to be some OOC moments from that perspective. 
> 
> This fic will only loosely follow the plot of the games. Some scenes will be dropped, and some will be changed for dramatic purposes (and also because I don't 100% remember the story anyways). 
> 
> Also I have every intention of bumping the rating to AT LEAST an M as time goes on, but we're not there yet.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The beginning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, for the relationship tags, I use "&" to signify friendships, and "\" to signify romance.
> 
> Chapters with potentially distressing content will be noted as such in the beginning notes, and a sterilised summary will be posted in the following chapter's beginning notes.
> 
> Strictly speaking, I have a tumblr. I don't do much aside from occasional reblogging, but hey, come say hi: https://whazzits.tumblr.com/

 

The sky shone in rainbows, sun barely peeking over the horizon, as Professor Kukui jogged along Route 1 from Hau'oli City, Rockruff prancing happily by his side. He smiled and waved as he passed the morning shift PokeCenter barista, as he did every morning. The barista smiled back, a brief flash as Kukui paced along evenly, but as soon as the townsman was no longer in sight, the smile slid from the professor's face, and he reassumed the frown he'd held all morning.

A morning jog, an afternoon spent move testing, an evening spent with Burnette, and, every other weekday, a cameo as the Masked Royal. A life he'd spent years working to achieve. Certainly, he enjoyed seeing the townsfolk and islanders on the morning jog. Of course, his afternoon research consistently yielded new insight to how pokemon drew upon their immense power. Obviously nothing compared to the time spent with his lovely, brillant wife. And, definitely, he never quite knew what would happen during the throwdowns at the Dome.

But a routine is a routine, and a routine had never been something suited to Kukui.

He sighed, the air jutting out in bursts tuned to his step. Samson Oak had been more than happy to allow Kukui to establish himself on Melemele Island for his research. The Trainer School's dean, delighted at the proximity to the professor, had been extremely helpful in his initial move-in, going so far as to rent him a parcel of school-owned land for an alarmingly low nice. The Kahuna himself, even, had Kukui over for dinner once a week, and insisted the professor be present for every Island Challenge commencement.

And that last item may very well have been the problem. Despite Melemele's status as the most populated island, Kukui was lucky to help send off children every three months. How was Kukui supposed to convince the International League Association of anything if the islands had so few natives to draw potential from?

Lost in thought as he rounded Ten Carat Hill, he almost tripped over the huddled form hidden among the rocks. Rockruff's alarmed bark was the only thing that kept him from crushing them completely. Instead, he sidestepped, and lost his balance.

"Whoah!" he yelled, skipping as he tried to steady himself. He heard the form yelp and saw it unfold itself, scurrying closer to the stable sand. 

"Whew! I'm sorry, cousin, I almost didn't see you!" His plastic smile had reattached itself as he turned to face the tripping hazard. A pair of startlingly purple eyes stared back silently. He blinked and took in the small individual. "Cousin, I don't recall seeing you--are you a tourist? Did you get lost? There isn't much to see in these outskirts."

The person--a child, he realized--slowly stood up, gaze never breaking. His smile never shifted, but that didn't stop the small shiver from flying up his spine. Her eyes were an astonishing indigo-violet, dark and piercing, like nothing he'd ever seen. Eyes that, finally, broke their gaze to look Kukui up and down. 

"Who are you," the child asked. No longer held by their gaze, he finally noted the child's dark skin, their oversized grey hoodie, their washed out jeans with ragged hems. Unassuming and played down, no wonder he hadn't noticed her in the painted rocks. 

Smile, smile, smile. "Ah, I'm Professor Kukui. I live in the shack down the way--just getting back from my morning jog. If you need help getting back to Hau'oli City, though, I'd be more than happy to assist you". The child's gaze shifted slightly, but indecipherably. 

"I appreciate the offer, but there's no need for an escort", they replied evenly. "You don't know me because I'm new to this area. Thank you, however, for your concern". 

He blinked at the formal tone. The child couldn't be more than ten, and an undernourished ten if that. "Well then, cousin, let's get that fixed! What's your name?"

 "Luna," she replied, brushing off her backside. Her gaze had, mercifully, not returned to his. A silence indicated a last name would not be provided. 

"Luna, welcome to Alola!" He turned up the wattage. She didn't react. Interesting. "Has your family met the Kahuna yet? Or received an island tour, complimentary of the local professor?"

"No", was the curt reply.

"Well, then, let me walk you home, so I can--"

"That won't be necessary," she cut him off. "We have much to do today, and we won't have time to play the tourist. I am certain you have better things to do with your time. Now, if you'll excuse me," she said as she turned around and walked towards the paved pathway. 

As she turned, he started and noticed her empty belt, her bagless hand. "Wait! Do you have any pokemon with you?" She turned back. "Or repels?" Her head shook no, once. "The only way back to the path is through the tall grass. At least let me escort you past any wild pokemon habitats."

A line appeared between her brows. Clearly she didn't want to interact with the cheery professor any more than necessary. Rockruff whined, twining between his legs. Kukui attempted to match the puppy dog eyes. Luna looked exasperated, but--"Only to the road, are we clear?"

"Perfectly!" chirped Kukui, and he bounded past her, Rockruff yipping happily. He heard Luna following behind, and slowed his pace to match her shorter legs. "This area isn't host to particularly strong pokemon, but it doesn't take much if you don't have anyone to protect you." Luna didn't respond to that, and he continued more directly. "You must be close to ten, when you'll gain a Trainer Card. If your move disrupted that process, I can help get you back on track"

"I'm twelve." Her voice had turned icy, and he flinched internally. A very undernourished 12, then. 

He pushed through, smile never dropping. "All the more reason to get you a card and a pokemon! The pokemon journey here in Alola is a bit different from the mainland, but you stand to learn just as much. Have you heard of our Island Chall--"

"I am not leaving home," she replied glacially. 

"That's still no reason not to have the card and pokemon," he repeated. They had long since entered the grass, passing the berry tree. He wished something would jump out at them--maybe the thrill of a good battle would ignite the fire of the frosty girl. "If nothing else, you need to be able to protect yourself if you get lost again."

He sensed her roiling mood beside him. "I will simply not get lost," she eventually replied tersely. 

"Does that mean you will never experience anything off the paved path? You shouldn't limit yourself like that. Life is meant to be lived; you'll never do that if you limit yourself to the safest places, and hide yourself away from a challenge!" He babbled empty platitudes, but for whatever reason, the child seemed to be listening, so he continued. "If it's a matter of your parents, I can speak to them, help them see how much you'll be missing without a journey. If you don't want to travel alone, there are at least two other children I can think of that would appreciate the company and friendship. You can make it work if you want to."

She was silent, and Kukui decided to stop before something else he said set her off. They stepped back onto the paved route, and stopped, not looking at each other. Kukui could tell that Luna was something special. She had none of the boundless energy of the other children he'd sent off, none of the focusless frenzy. She was sharpened, somehow. He felt it.

"You could be strong, you know," he said quietly. "The strongest. Nothing and no one would be able to stop you, if you put your mind to it."

She looked at him, finally. Her expression was a cultivated emptiness. Her eyes, shocking and arresting. "I appreciate your thoughts, but I cannot leave home." With that, she moved past him, and began to walk east down the road.

Kukui stood there for some time longer, wondering at the strange girl Luna. Her gaze, her age, her hardened mind. He would've stood there all morning, had Rockruff not nipped at his ankle. Kukui looked down, and Rockruff yipped, clearly overdue for breakfast. With a sigh, mind nowhere near cleared, he began the trek back to his shack. 

 

* * *

That Saturday, as he and Burnett settled into the Kahuna's living room, he congratulated himself. Not once, during the past four days, had he wandered over to Luna's home. She hadn't needed to tell him, of course--there was only one home along that route, in that direction, within walking distance, that had been on the market. He knew exactly where her family lived. He also knew that he didn't want to face that gaze again without being very well prepared for the experience.

Burnett leaned against him, humming happily into her wine. Kukui smiled and scrubbed at her hair, before turning to the Kahuna. "Hala, I have something to ask you about."

Hala chortled. "You know I've done everything within my power to push things forward, but without the ILA changing their mind, we have nothing new to discuss."

"No, no, not that--although, I did finally manage to get Kahili's agent's email, so that's something--but no, that's not what I wanted to talk about--although it might be, at the end," he mused. He didn't get pulled into his thoughts, though, as his tipsy sentence had pulled Hala forward in his seat, eyes glinting with interest.

"I met an…intense child, this Wednesday," he began. "Called herself Luna. She moved to the empty house on Route 1, near the Iki Town path, on Tuesday. Do you know anything about the family?"

Hala's eyes had flashed at the name Luna. "Ah, so I do, son. Just Luna and her mother, Luna. I think a mainland Meowth as well. A quiet family. I haven't spoken with them yet."

"So you haven't met Luna?"

Hala pulled back. "No, I can't say I have."

"She's twelve. Two years past when most go out and find themselves. But she's still at home, and when I met her, she was pretty adamant about that not changing." Kukui sighed, and Burnett shifted on him. 

"Honey, are you trying to pull her into the trainer life?" his wife admonished. "I know we need more little feet on the ground before the League takes off, but that doesn't mean you can drag everyone out of their comfort zone to fulfil your dream. That just means all our trainers won't want to be there, and how good can we be with that?"

"It's not that, sweetie," he said. Hala sat, silent. "I've been helping Hala send children off for three years now. And children, you know, some are interested in the academic aspect, some are interested in battling, some just want to go on a island vacation. But none of them really have that--that drive, that spark to them, you know?"

"Plenty do, though," Hala said gruffly. "You remember Lana, right? She was just last spring, and look at her now--a captain, training a finnicky pokemon. Plenty of spark to that girl."

"Or Soffy, the winter before!" Burnett said. "Literal sparks! A child after my own heart!" She giggled, and Kukui smiled at her fondly, but quickly went back to his pensive frown.

"Lana and Soffy are both incredibly bright and driven," he conceded, "but…they weren't the same. They lacked, I don't know…" he huffed frustratedly. 

"Perspective?" Hala offered quietly. 

"Yes! Well, maybe--that's part of it," Kukui bumbled. "I just feel that, you know. They're children."

"So's this Luna girl, though?" Burnett looked at him quizzically. Hala's gaze is even, showing nothing.

"Yeah, of course. She's so small, even for twelve, but--but I feel like she could see right through me," he said, words and thoughts coming to him as he spoke. "Lana and Soffy both fell for the Masked Royal disguise, you know? They still don't know that that's me. Luna wouldn't be like that. She'd know, immediately, who I am. I can tell. And I don't get the feeling she was refusing the Journey because she was scared. That was not a child that felt fear that easily. I think she wants to go, but she's holding back, probably because of her mother," he realized. But he shook his head. "There's something else, too, but I can't--I can't figure out what else she's thinking. But it's not something so simple as being afraid or uninterested. She had thought it through. And I want to know, I want to see. What would happen, if a mind as sharp and focused as hers aims that focus at pokemon."

"Are you sure, honey? You spoke to the girl for all of five minutes," his wife ventured tentatively. 

"I know," he replied firmly. "I know what I saw. She is strong. She could be stronger than anyone. I told her so."

The room was silent. Burnett hummed quietly against him. Hala's expression turned inward. He was clearly digesting Kukui's monologue. After a few minutes, though, he fixed his eyes back on Kukui. He looked…excited? Kukui blinked. 

"You may very well be right about little Luna," Hala said, "but for now, you two should go home. It's late, and we all know Lillie shouldn't be left unattended for too long. Kukui, I'll visit Luna's mother tomorrow, and see if I can't talk some sense into her.

Kukui grinned back. He could feel his routine-measured days melting away. Things were going to change, he could feel it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A conversation with Hala, and Diana spills her heart.

The light, the light, it bore its pressure on her, compressing her, she couldn't move, she couldn't _breathe_ \--

* * *

As dawn creeped its way through her window, for the fifth day in a row, Luna gave up on trying to sleep. She sighed as she rolled her legs off her small mattress, wincing as she felt aches unaddressed by the fitful night. No matter how often she moved, she always faced these problems with the time zone the first few weeks.

She slipped on loose clothes and shuffled to the kitchen, taking note of the spots where the house creaked. Diana wouldn't rise for some time yet, she knew, and doubtless was as restless as Luna was, even without the annoyance of old floorboards.

Luna knew what was in the cupboards, but she searched anyways. She was greeted by a half-full container of rice, a variety of useless spices, and a very sad looking cluster of Leppa berries. She considered throwing them away, but decided against it. Leppas weren't quite as common on the islands, and Diana would miss them. Best to let Diana make that decision for herself.

Instead, Luna improvised, grabbing rice, sugar, and cinnamon. Far from nutritious--as though that mattered, she thought wryly to herself. Either way, she'd have to venture out to find more food this afternoon. She had wandered the path of Route 1 the past several days in a row, but she had yet to locate a grocery store.

She turned as the master bedroom door opened, and Diana stumbled out blearily, headscarf in disarray, Meowth at her feet. "Mornin, Luna"

 "I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

"No, no, I was awake anyways." Diana gathered up the pokemon and sat at the bar, as Luna doubled her shotgun rice porridge to share. While Diana, to those that didn't know her, would look to be in her early fourties, she sat slouched and pouting like a teenager. Her skin was much lighter than Luna's, although they shared the same charcoal undertone. Like Luna, her eyes were an unusual purple, and their hair was styled identically, long tight curls secured with hairbands They shared a comfortable silence, broken only by Meowth's quiet purring, until Luna portioned out the food and sat down. Right as they were taking their first bites, a sharp knock came from the door.

Diana froze, and Luna forced herself to remain calm, face empty. "Diana, were we expecting anyone today?" She jerked her head no. Luna's thoughts flashed to the nosy professor from earlier in the week, then her gaze to Meowth. He looked annoyed at Diana's sudden rigidity, but he wasn't himself alarmed. A second knock, just as sharp, jolted Luna to action. She grabbed Diana's phone from the counter, finding their contact and hovering her thumb over the call icon, as she moved to the door. Peering through the peephole, she saw a large old man, adorned in bright yellow robes and a truly impressive amount of facial hair. He was fairly short. That reassured her, and as he raised his hand to knock again, she undid the locks and opened the door a small amount.

 "Can I help you…?"

 The man stared at her, eyes buried in his face, and Luna stared right back. After a few moments of mutual assessment, he smiled.

 "Alola. I am Hala, the Kahuna of Hau'oli Island. Our mutual friends let me know of your arrival. I was hoping to speak with you and your mother for a moment?"

 Luna considered it. They had arrived several days ago, but no one had yet contacted them. She turned wordlessly. Diana stared away towards the kitchen, eyes wide and unseeing. Luna sighed and turned back to the older man. "What do you know about Diana?"

 "I know of her problems with going outside," he said gently. "I didn't want to bother you two so soon after what must've surely been a great ordeal for her, but there are conversations we must have that cannot wait."

 Luna nodded, grateful for his consideration. "I'm going to need a few minutes to calm her down. Wait here." Hala nodded, and Luna closed the door, hooking only the chain lock as she turned and walked back to Diana. The woman was breathing in spurts, crying silently. Luna's heart ached as she rubbed soothing circles on her back. "Diana, can you move? Let's get you somewhere more comfortable." Diana twitched slightly, and slid off the chair, letting Luna guide her to the small couch that had come with the house. She gripped Luna's hand hard, and she knew she'd have a few bruises later that day.

 "Diana, listen to my voice. Nothing else, just me. I'd like you to breathe with me. In….and out. Innnn….and ouuuut. Shhh," she continued, rubbing evenly on her back. Diana's eyelids drooped and closed, her breathing regulating itself slowly. "Diana, it's our local contact. He's an old man, old enough that I can figure out a way to protect us if it comes down to it." Maybe. Diana didn’t have to hear that. "I have our main contact ready to go if it comes down to it. There's a police station just down the road. I'll keep you safe, I promise. Everything is going to be OK. I'm here, we're safe, we're OK."

 Diana's breathing had normalized, her eyes opened, and a weak smile appeared. "Thanks, Luna. I don't deserve you."

 Luna kissed Diana on the forehead, and after a nod from the older woman, stood to re-open the door. "Thank you for waiting. I think it's safe for you to come in now."

 Hala stood from their porch, smiling, and grabbed a basket Luna had missed earlier. "Of course, Luna." Luna let him in, then again relatched only the chain lock--enough to prevent immediate entry, but something the police could easily break through if needed. She turned to find Hala settled in the armchair, not looking at Diana. She had calmed considerably, but trembled at the presence of the unknown man. Luna returned to the couch, and offered Diana a reassuring hand squeeze.

 "Before we get any further, I'm sure the two of you would like to see this," Hala said as he pulled a card out of his wallet and passed it to Luna. Luna scrutinized the document--a level 5 secret clearance, issued from the International Police--before comparing its photo to the man in front of them. It had clearly been taken relatively recently. She passed it to Diana, who looked at it stiffly.

 "You weren't part of the IP before we came," she stated, and Hala shook his head.

 "No. I was approached by a, well, I guess you could call him a coworker. He would've been your local contact, but he lives on another island, and, well, it isn't quite as stable there as it is here," he explained. "I have, however, been Kahuna here for almost forty years. I would've kept you two safe, even if the IP hadn't reached out to me." He smiled evenly. Luna noted how he addressed them both, equally, instead of directing conversation to Diana.

 "I appreciate that," she replied. "You've only been cleared to level 5, though. You can't have been told everything about our situation." He shook his head, and she continued, "For us all to be on the same page, I'd ask that you tell us everything you've been told about our situation." She squeezed Diana's hand again, knowing that recounting their history in any capacity might easily set her off again. Diana squeezed back.

 "Of course, of course," he huffed. "You and Diana have been under the protection of the International Police for the past ten years. The primary threat comes from a single older male, although it is unknown if he has any assistance. Diana, you have severe agoraphobia, and cannot leave the house. You receive a small stipend to cover your expenses. You've been placed in Hoenn, Kanto, and now Alola. You have Meowth here as a therapy pokemon, but neither of you have any pokemon aside from him. Is all of this correct?"

 "Yes," Luna replied. She would not correct him on the items he clearly had not been briefed on.

 "I see," he said. "I took the liberty of bringing you some vegetables, from my own garden, as well as some malasadas from town. How much do you know of Alola?" he asked as he passed the pastries to Luna and Diana. The older woman began to eat, as Luna shook her head to indicate their shallow knowledge of the isolated islands. The transfer had been rather sudden, after all. Hala allowed them to eat, explaining to them aspects of governance, cuisine, and tradition. His voice, while gruff, was warm and comforting, and Luna felt Diana relax considerably as he spoke. By the time they had finished the sweet pastries, he was discussing local variance in pokemon. A strange light was in his eyes, and Luna shifted uneasily.

 "Truthfully, I have come here with ulterior motives," he said, and Luna glanced at Diana. Her expression had softened, and another panic attack didn't seem to be oncoming. Still, Luna didn't want two attacks in an hour, and sharpened her gaze at the older man. He faltered, then continued. "Diana, if I understand things correctly, Luna is already twelve, yet hasn't gone on her pokemon journey. Is that correct?"

 "Y-Yes," Diana said haltingly. "They felt it would be difficult to monitor us both in Kanto if she travelled."

 "I'm not leaving Diana alone," Luna interjected, jumping ahead in the conversation. "I have to take care of all the shopping. I don't need a journey of self-discovery; I know who I am, and I know where I need to be: right here." She gazed firmly at Hala, who stared right back.

 "I live less than five minutes away. I would be more than happy to bring Diana groceries, and to check in on her every day. There's a police station at a similar distance"--and Luna flinched to hear her own consolation directed back at her--"and besides, this region hasn't seen any organized crime of note in decades. On top of that, Luna, you are still young. There is plenty of room for you to grow--why not here, on the islands, where you'd be safer than anywhere else?"

 "I will not," Luna replied evenly.

 "Luna…" Diana shifted uneasily next to her.

 "Additionally, Luna, even if you never leave Hau'oli Island, you'll have a Trainer Card, and pokemon of your own. You can't tell me that you're content to be protected by agents and old men like myself for the rest of your life." Luna stared at him, her face not slipping a single emotion. "Diana, your condition makes things understandable, but don't you believe Luna needs to leave the house if she's to form a life of her own?" He was gentle, unaccusing, as he looked at Diana. "She's clearly highly intelligent for her age. What does she want to do with herself? What do you want her to do?"

 Luna was about to interject again when she felt Diana shaking beside her. A quick glance showed her expression had turned inward. "Thank you for your consideration, Hala, but I think our time for today is up," Luna said quickly.

 Hala looked at Diana and nodded. "I understand. I will be back tomorrow with more supplies for the two of you. I hope you will both reflect on what I've said," he said with a pointed glance at Luna. Luna stared evenly back, and rose to escort him to the door. Diana didn't move, lost in thought as Luna relocked the door.

 An uneasy silence permeated their tiny home as Luna moved the groceries to their kitchen. Meowth had climbed back onto Diana's lap, and she was stroking him gently, eyes focused on the far distance.

* * *

 Luna was settling into bed that night, running over the day's accomplishments. Their main contact, back in Kanto, had verified Hala's identity not long after he'd left. She'd contacted the local ISP, and begrudgingly arranged for Hala to bring them the setup equipment tomorrow. Her room was mostly unpacked, books shelved and small wardrobe arranged. She would have to ask Hala tomorrow about the nearest grocery store--he had promised more food, but she knew better than to rely on their local contacts for too long.

 A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts, and after a moment, Diana stepped into the room. "Luna, I was hoping we could talk?"

 "Of course. What's wrong?" Luna asked. "Was Hala too much for today? I can ask him to leave everything on the porch tomorrow--"

 "No! No, that's not it at all," Diana protested. "He…I like him. He had a nice voice, and didn't try to shake our hand or hug us, like the Sinnoh contact. He gave us space."

 "Except for all that butting into our personal business," Luna griped, and Diana's face hardened. She moved to Luna's bed and sat beside her, reaching for her hand. Luna stared back, face empty.

 "That's what I'm here to discuss. Luna, listen to me, please. Don’t say anything, just…listen. You've stayed by my side these past ten years, and I can't tell you what that means to me." Diana smiled, clear and bright, and Luna blinked. "I have been protected, by you and others, for so long. But don't you think that I've clipped your wings?"

 "What do you mean?"

  "Luna, I know the types of books you read. I see the way you look at trainers during Championship challenge matches. You and I both know you could go far, if you only tried. And I want you to try."

 Luna's mind buzzed. This conversation had happened, in bits and pieces, many times. It had never happened all at once, so directly, and Diana had never delivered it with such an adamant look. Truth be told, Luna had thought of going on the journey herself, many times, but every time she considered it, a few problems immediately came to mind.

 "I…If I go as far as you think I could, I'd draw attention to myself. They broadcast high-level gym battles everywhere else."

 "There are no gyms here," Diana immediately replied. "You heard as well as I did. The Trial system is informal enough that nothing really gets filmed."

 "People will still notice me. They always do. My eyes…"

 "Can be hidden. Colored contacts are a thing, you know. And if we cut your hair, dressed you in new clothes for once…you'd easily fly under the radar." This hadn't come about because of Hala's visit. This was something Diana had clearly devoted many days of thought to.

 "…It still isn't safe. He's still out there," Luna whispered.

 "Luna. We arrived on Tuesday. It has always taken him years to find us, no matter where we went. And, even if he does figure out where we are tomorrow, he'll have to figure out a way to travel across an ocean without being discovered. You have time," Diana said with a smile.  "Enough time to go out and enjoy a taste of life"

 "But..I…what…" Never once, in the past ten years of hiding, had Diana ever been this confident in the idea of Luna leaving her. "How will you get by?"

 "I spoke with Hala on the phone after he left. He said he'd be more than happy to bring me what I need. He also said it would be simple to put a fake name on your Trainer Card, and he's bringing contacts and new clothes tomorrow. These islands are safe. There's no organized crime. There aren't a lot of people. There are two residents, on two islands, who have IP clearance. No one will notice you, and I'll be okay without you, for a short amount of time. Please, Luna," Diana said, her voice gentle. Luna bluntly noticed her eyes had filled with tears. "Just…go around this one island. Please. And, after that, if you can come back to me and honestly tell me that I'm not killing you, killing your dreams…then I'll let you stay. But I refuse to have you live and die, constrained by my fears. Please. Live for both of us."

 "I…you…I'll…Give me a little bit of time to think?" Luna said weakly. Diana nodded with a smile, patted Luna's hand and rose, left the room, quietly shutting the door behind her.

 Luna, drained, slowly laid back down, staring blankly at the ceiling, the day's conversations replaying in her mind. She turned her head to look at her bookshelf--the first thing she'd set up in her new room. Compendium of Moves, Vol. IX: Ghost. Analysis of Fairy-Type Pokemon Reassessments. Effort Values: Their Determination and Accrual. Below her shelves of tomes lived two entire rows of DVDs, recordings of notable broadcast battles. She sighed and returned her gaze to the ceiling.

 She hadn't lied when she said she knew who she was. She did, however, know that it wasn't Diana's caretaker. But what else could she do? She wasn't about to abandon her only family to the demon that hunted them. It didn't matter how "safe" they were--they would always be at risk, so long as he lived free. She knew that.

 Free, the way she wasn't. One man, acting alone, had reduced Diana and her to fearful cowards, running every two years for new shelter. A very dangerous man, to be sure…but still, one man. A tall figure flashed behind her eyes, and the rage she kept locked deep in her heart began to boil. He had already taken their past from them. He had crippled Diana, left her alone with only Luna for comfort. How dare he take their future.

 Fine. One trip, around the island. If only to beat the shit out of every child's pokemon she met, to skim off some of the old, unfathomable amount of rage that boiled in her heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Take notes on that rice porridge, poor college children of the world (except maybe add some milk)
> 
> I've decided not to capitalize Pokemon, or pokemon species names, unless the species name is used as the individual's name. We don't capitalize words like 'dog' or 'worm', so in-universe, why would they capitalize 'pikachu' or 'meowth'? Grammar is important *shakes 3DS aggressively*


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hau, Lillie, and Moon meet.

"It's good to see you, cousin!" Hau peered around Kukui excitedly as they approached the strange new girl. She was dressed in a purple striped top--incredibly skinny in that--and grey distressed shorts. Her hair had been shorn to only a few inches, straight without the length to twist. Her grey eyes looked back at them, and Hau shivered. She looked scary! Was this really a good idea? He glanced up at Kukui, who waved eagerly at the girl.

"Hau, I'd like you to meet Moon. Moon, this is Hala's grandson, Hau. Both of you will be receiving your pokemon and setting off on your Island Trial today, and I felt that it'd be good for you two to get to know each other." Hau smiled brightly at the new girl. Hala always told him that a smile was the first step to everything great, and Hau was looking forward to taking his first step with the girl.

Moon, however, just looked at him, unswayed. That's okay though, he thought. It's hard to be new, or so he'd heard. He'd never been new to anywhere. "Hi!", he exclaimed. "I'm Hau! How long have you been here? It hasn't been long, right? I would've seen you, in school! I go to the trainer school, but I think I'll learn a lot more by travelling with pokemon of my own, right?" She didn't respond, merely falling in with Kukui and Hau as they made their way to the Iki Town stage.

"If you haven't been here long, that means you probably haven't gone into Hau'oli City much, right?" Hau continued. "Oh, man, you HAVE to try their malasadas! Malasadas are the best thing ever, did they have them where you came from?" She didn't answer. "I want to eat at every malasada shop in the islands on my journey! There's one in Hau'oli City, and I've gone there plenty, but I'll still go there after we get our pokemon. What type of pokemon do you think they'll have? What do you want to take with you? I don't think I'll be able to decide!"

Hau continued until they got to the stage. Moon, he decided, was a great listener.  Upon their arrival, he noticed that it was only the three of them. "Hey, where's Grandpa? Shouldn't he be here by now?"

Kukui hummed next to him. "He said to meet us at 8am sharp, and we have at least twenty minutes until then."

"Aw, man! Why did you have us meet at the path at seven, then? I could've slept longer!"

"Because, Hau, I thought you could use the time to get to know your new friend." Kukui smiled, but it was strange. He was looking at Moon, and Moon was looking back at him. Was she angry? She must've wanted to sleep in too.

"Thank you for your concern, Kukui. I think I'd rather walk around the town while we wait." Hau started at her voice.

"Wow! You have a very pretty voice!" Moon looked sharply to him at that. "You've never been here in Iki Town, though? No problem, cousin! I'll take you around!" Before she could say anything, he'd grabbed her by the arm dragging her off the stage as Kukui laughed behind them.

Really, there wasn't much to see in Iki Town--not a pokecenter, not even a malasada shop. Hau knew that, which is why he was so excited to finally get started on his journey! He had been waiting 11 years to go on his journey, eat all the tasty malasada, and come home to beat his Grandpa's best team. He happily told Moon all of this, never letting her wrist go. "It's like my life is finally starting!" he exclaimed, and at that her mouth twitched in what could've been a smile.

After he'd taken her past all Iki Town's homes, he pulled her to the path in the north. "You know about the four Tapus, right?" She nodded. "Well, Tapu Koko lives past this path! I've never seen him, but Grandpa did, a long time ago! I wonder, do you think we'll see him if we go this way? Wouldn't that be a great way to start all of this! And even if we don't, you'll see the canyon, it's so cool, let's go!"

He dragged her down the path, but before they got to the bridge, they stopped. Distantly, in the middle, a flock of spearows was flying around the bridge. On solid land, noises of distress came from a white figure. "N-nebby--it's--it's---H-help--"

"What's wrong, cousin?" he asked, and the angel turned around. He gaped, staring at her pure white dress, long blonde hair, beautiful blue eyes…which were currently full of tears. "What's wrong?" he asked again, alarmed at whatever could make such a pretty girl cry.

"Please! Save Nebby! The--the spearows are attacking it, but--but I can't move…I'm so scared! But Nebby!" she sobbed. Hau let go of Moon to grab the pretty girl by the shoulders.

Before he could say anything, though, before he could run back to find Kukui or tell her that it would be OK, he felt Moon move. He held the pretty girl and stared as Moon ran onto the old bridge.

"Moon!" he cried. The bridge started to groan. Hala had told Hau not to go onto the bridge just a few months ago, he remembered. It was old, the wood rotten, liable at any moment to--

Just as Moon dove towards something in the middle, a bright flash blinded Hau. Suddenly, an entire center section of the bridge was gone, and Moon was falling towards the river, and the pretty girl was screaming, and--

An orange smear came from the ruins, catching Moon and the bundle she held before they hit the rocks. It carried them up, returning them to solid land, and deposited them in front of the sobbing girl. Moon's eyes were wide open, and she was breathing heavily, but she was otherwise very much alive. The pretty girl lurched forward to grab the stationary blue pokemon from Moon's arms, and Moon relinquished the burden wordlessly.

Moon turned back to Tapu Koko. It was smaller than he thought it would be, Hau thought. Tapu Koko stared back, then keening, produced a stone and held it to Moon. She took it, silently, and Tapu Koko cried again, before shooting back into the depths of the island.

* * *

 

Hau was silent as they walked back to Iki Town, as the pretty girl--Lillie--explaied sobbingly to an alarmed Kukui what had happened, as Hala took the glittering stone from Moon and looked at it curiously. Before the pokemon were presented, however, he exploded.

"THAT WAS SO COOL! Moon, you were AMAZING! You didn't even have pokemon, and you went out there anyways, and we SAW TAPU KOKO, he was SO COOL, even if he was kind of tiny, and he GAVE YOU THAT STONE, THAT'S SO COOL, cousin, SO COOL--"

He didn't even know what he was saying. Kukui and Moon stared at him and laughed. Lillie's sniffling had long since quieted, and she gave him a shaky smile that thrilled him on further. He still hadn't stopped by the time Hala returned, stone no longer in hand.

"Hau, are you ready to receive your pokemon?" Hala asked, and Hau's attention shifted so quickly he was silenced from whiplash. "Although, as the newcomer to our island, I feel it only fair if Moon here chooses first."

"That's OK! I'll be happy with whatever I get!" Hau chirps happily, and Hala smiles fondly back before turning again to Moon.

"Here we have three pokemon--Popplio, Litten, and Rowlett. You may choose any one of them as a companion for your journeys."

Moon nodded silently, and replied immediately. "Do you happen to know their natures at all?"

Hau blinked. Natures? But Hala seemed pleased. "Popplio is a bit quirky, I've noticed. Rowlett is fairly relaxed. And Litten is a stubborn, adamant sort."

"Litten, then," she answers without hesitation.

"Litten it is, then, cousin!" Kukui exclaims. "You've chosen a great one, if I do say so myself! His ultimate evolution is something to behold! Let me know if you need any assistance with his moves."

Moon doesn't respond. She had opened the pokeball, and Litten and her were carefully regarding each other. After a moment, though, it had butted its head to her knee, and began purring. Moon gave it a soft smile as she picked it up. "Are you going to give it a name?" Hau asks eagerly, but Moon shakes her head.

"No, if I want him to have a name, it'll only come after travelling. I don't know him well enough for that, I think," she says softly.

"Suit yourself. My turn now, right?" he turns eagerly to Hala, who nods. Hau returns attention to the two pokemon left. Both are cute, but which is better? He can't decide. They're both good! Who decided that you can only take one, anyways? Popplio doesn't quite look comfortable moving on land with its back tail. Would it even be able to walk by his side like that? Hau decides immediately. "I'll take Rowlett!" he exclaims.

"Good, excellent choice, Hau!" Hala beamed as Hau eagerly opened the pokeball to inspect his new best friend. Rowlett whoo-ed back at him happily, and Hau smiled back before turning to Moon.

"Hey, do you want to try a battle? I want to know what Rowlett can do!"

Moon looked back at him. He realized, as her gaze fixed on him, that he expected her to be happier after seeing that soft smile, but now…now he regretted asking. She looked at him with a face he'd never seen before. Hau wondered if this was how malasada felt as it sat in the shop case.  Just as quickly, her gaze returned to its normal, empty state. "Of course, Hau. I'd be delighted to battle you".

Except maybe it wasn't empty? Hau couldn't tell. All he knew was that, for a brief moment, Moon's smile had scared him.

They both sent out their pokemon, and Hau blanked. What moves did Rowlett have? Growl? Everything could use growl, right? "Growl!" he commanded, and Rowlett began a menacing hum. Perfect! The litten wouldn't hit as hard that way--

"Litten, ember", Moon said, and Litten breathed a jet of fire at Rowlett. Rowlett was concentrating on his little growl, and couldn't jump away fast enough to miss getting hit.

"Rowlett! Tackle him!" Hau barked, and Rowlett obligingly angled his body at the litten. It braced itself, waiting for a command, as Rowlett neared, before--

"Ember, again," Moon said quickly, and Rowlett had nowhere to run as Litten breathed fire mere inches from him. With a cry, Rowlett collapsed.

Hau stood silent for a moment, then beamed. "Wow, Moon! That was amazing! The way you waited for Rowlett to get close--that was so much fun!" He carefully collected the small Rowlett in his arms, wincing at the heat coming from his feathers. "I'll take Rowlett to a PokeCenter, then!"

 "Moon, wait here, if you could," Hala said. Moon turned and nodded. Kukui looked on, eyes dancing. Lillie had disappeared during the battle, Hau saw. That sucked, but maybe it was better if she didn't watch him lose.

 "I'll see you around, cousin!" Hau said before walking away rather quickly. He hoped Hala wouldn't notice how eager he was to get away from Moon. The thought immediately made him feel bad, and a little embarrased. She hadn't done anything wrong, just was a bit shy. Maybe? He thought back to that brief, bloodthirsty smile, and shuddered. How could a girl so small and cute be so scary? As much as he wanted to be her friend, and as cool as Moon had been when she ran out onto that bridge, he couldn't connect with her the way he did everyone else. She was weird, he decided, but maybe weird would be fun in the long run.

 At the least, he thought as he made his way down Route 1, he'd rather have her as a friend than an enemy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, Hau. Do you, dear reader, remember what it was like to be 11? Because I sure don't. And he's such a happy child, too. The absolute hardest type of person to write. He's honestly not my favorite because of it, but he's pretty necessary to the SuMo experience, so here he is. 
> 
> So yes. Luna is now Moon. Except not really. She's always going to fall more on the "OC" side of things than the "Protagonist From The Game" things, but she's walking Moon's steps and solving Moon's problems, so Moon she will be in the tags.
> 
> Please, let me know your impressions from this chapter! I can't know if I'm stirring up proper feelings of "WHATS GOIN ON" if you don't tell me :) Did I write the pokemon battle well enough? Battling is important, but also sort of boring to recount, so let me know if that's lacking.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moon begins her journey in earnest, meets Ilima, and contends with the greatest foe of all--bad rapping

_Her feet were bleeding, but she had to keep going, keep moving, don't stop yet, we're so close--_

The night breeze carried with it the sweet scent of the nearby berry fields. Moon breathed it in deeply, nestling further into her sleeping bag, Litten purring evenly beside her. As mercurial as the rains tended to be in Alola, she had eschewed her tent, preferring instead the star-filled sky. It was a new moon, she noted dryly.

She had received Litten three days ago, but she had barely gone past Hau'oli City. Partially this was due to the blockade further up the road, attendants cheerily directing her back to the captain--Ilima? What a strange name--but mostly it was due to the continued botherings of Hala and Kukui. Kukui had given her a pokedex, which she was internally over the moon--snort--about, but he had immediately tried to install some bizarre sentient Rotom into it. She had, very firmly, insisted that he instead install an older firmware, free of electric personality.

Then, almost immediately, he'd tried to drag her out to route 1 to teach her how to catch pokemon. Logically, she knew he was being extremely kind, but her hyperaware sense of emotion told her that his smiles were almost all fake. She knew he was analyzing her, trying to see through the carefully constructed web of lies she and Diana had spun for themselves. It was a struggle--either she resisted, and allowed him the opportunity to see through her, or she played along, and let him treat her like a child. As much as she hated the latter, it was safer for him to underestimate her, and she had smiled through his patronizing tutorial.

She had thought that was all, but no, he had sicced Hau on her to drag her to a Trainer School. This had been where she drew the line. After all, most of the child trainers she thrashed were the only witnesses to her technique, and who of them would really understand what was happening? It was also good experience, she reminded herself, for Litten and her new grubbin, fresh caught after Kukui's "lesson".

Grubbin shifted under her arm, and she stroked her velvety skin. She was growing quickly, but Moon knew how weak grubbins started. She'd have to be over leveled at every step just to keep up. Moon sighed. It didn't really matter, did it? It would all be over once she'd made her lap around the island.

Moon didn't share Diana's fear of the outdoors, but she hadn't journeyed far afield in any capacity, and the feeling of being untethered was something she was still adjusting to. She had called Diana earlier, and the night before, and she had told herself it was to ensure Hala had kept his end of the bargain.

"Oh, Moon, don't worry! Hala has visited, yesterday and today, and he stayed for hours. He even cooked me dinner! Apparently Alola's cuisine is even more unique than we thought--did you know you can use spam to--"

Well, at least Diana had warmed quickly to the old man. Moon felt odd about that. Their contacts in other regions had never been quite this friendly, although none had been completely cold, and while many had eventually reached that level of familiarity with Diana, none had done so nearly as quickly. Moon's jealousy was outpaced by her sincere happiness for Diana, and her even more sincere gratitude to no longer be the only target of her chattering.

Moon hoped Diana wasn't forcing herself.

Her mind drifted again. The sound of the waves was soothing, in a way she had never know waves to be. It was quiet here. She liked that. Nothing and no one could sneak up on her like that.

Their main IP contact hadn't been thrilled, apparently, at Moon's nascent journey, but Hala was seemingly well respected enough to ensure it was allowed. Her grey contacts had been purchased that very hour, and she had been marched to the Hau'oli City salon almost immediately. She recalled the journey through the town center. No one had caught her gaze, no one turned to stare, no one had tried to take her photo to share with the world at large. Her strange eyes had been effectively hidden. She idly wondered why no one at the IP had thought to use colored contacts before.

For the first time in her life, Moon could move freely. No one could tell that she was anything special on sight. The thought filled her veins with a fizzy excitement. It was some time before she fell asleep.

* * *

 

"Alola! I'm glad you could make it!"

Moon nodded at the young man. Ilima. Captain Ilima. What a strange name. His smile lacked the wattage of Kukui or the persistence of Hau, and his gaze, while serious, didn't have the analytical bent she had experienced all too often. She realized that he saw her only as another young trial goer. Nothing special. It was still a strange feeling.

"Thank you, Ilima. I understand that you will administer my first trial?"

"Yes, although it won't be held in the city. Walk with me," he asked, and they set out from the north gate of the city.

"Has anyone explained how trials work?" he asked, and she shook her head no. He launched into a simple explanation as they walked. It was clearly something he'd delivered before. Midway through, though, he was interrupted.

"Yo! Hold it!" someone called from behind them, and the two turned to stair. A pair of youths, in the same style of clothing, were jogging behind them. Their black shirts had a stylized skull on them. Moon looked on curiously, and Ilima huffed beside her.

"You got some interesting pokemon there, girlie," one sneered at her. She was too stunned to respond, but Ilima beat her to the punch.

"Let me guess. You want her to give you her pokemon?" Ilima sighed.

"Right on the nose!" the other grunt replied. "I don't wanna come to blows!" sang the other. Were they trying to rhyme?

"Oh my. How terrifying." Ilima deadpanned, and the grunts bristled.

"Nobody wants to talk to you, Prince!"

"When we're done with you, you're gonna wince!"

"Don't look down on Team Skull, bro!"

"When we thrash you, you can't say no!"

Oh god, they actually were trying to rhyme.

Ilima smiled at Moon. "If you'd like to just continue on, I'll take care of these two." She nodded, ignoring the screeching of the failed poets, and turned back to continue on the path. She quickly walked past hearing them, lost in thought. She had been expressly told that Alola had no organized crime, but the two men had dressed alike, and tried to steal pokemon. They did seem fairly weak, though. And their rhyming was awful. She couldn't imagine Team Rocket or Team Plasma allowing their grunts to try and fail at poetry.

Soon enough, Ilima came jogging up behind her. "Sorry about that," he apologized. "Skull grunts are obnoxious, but harmless."

"I see," she replied evenly. "I wasn't told Alola had organized crime problems"

"Ah, Team Skull is barely organized. I think it's just a bunch of kids in a shanty town a few islands over. I've never heard of anyone actually getting hurt from them, so I don't think there's any reason to worry. I'm still happy to kick them off the island as Captain, of course," he huffed proudly.

She considered this briefly, then looked back at Ilima. He took his Captainship very seriously; remembering Hala's lecture from their first meeting, she recalled that they weren't granted a particularly wide array of powers. "Ilima, how old are you?"

He started back at her. "I'm sixteen. I've been captain for three years now." He was obviously quite proud of his achievements.

"Those two, they knew you?"

She hadn't pegged him for a boy with an ego, but there he was, swelling with pride. "Yeah, I mean, being a Captain's all about being active in the community. Of course they know who I am. That's good for me, you know? If everyone knows that I'm Ilima, and I'm the Captain, they'll come to me first. Usually that's because they need help, but sometimes it's those Skull morons looking for a fight--and if I fight them first, no one else has to get hurt."

He beamed with pride before breaking his gaze. "Here we are! Verdant Cavern, the site of the first trial!" Moon looked at the unassuming cave, and filed his words away for later. She wanted to take time to reflect on what he'd said.

* * *

Later that night and one Trial later, Moon again settled into a quiet area, Litten and Grubbin by her side. They had done wonderfully, against both the trial pokemon and the irate grunts who had returned to fail at crashing the proceedings. Litten's fur shone with oil, and he couldn't seem to settle himself next to her. He would evolve soon, she knew.

She thought of the demon that hunted her and Diana. How the IP was perpetually unable to allocate enough resources to find him, despite the swath of violence he left wherever he went, always slipping out of whatever trap they laid. How intently the man had pursued them through the years. 

Her thoughts turned back to what Ilima had said. "Of course they know who I am." "If I fight first, no one else has to get hurt."

An idea trickled into her mind, and for the second night in a row, body humming, she was unable to sleep.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rotom Dex is annoying and I resent Yokai Hunter for making the PokeTeam feel any need for its inclusion.
> 
> Team Skull is easy to write because I, too, am terrible at rhyming.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nebby disappears, and Lillie disappears after it.

Was the sun always this dim? Lillie couldn't tell. Maybe the bright, polished surfaces of Aether Paradise just reflected too much of it. Lillie had always felt like a piece of the scenery there, but here on Route 3 she just felt horribly exposed. She wished people would stop staring at her. She knew she stood out, in her pure-white frills and wide-brimmed hat, but she really didn't have anything else. She did regret the dress, though. Moving quickly in it was much more difficult than it needed to be. 

She ran jagged lines, back and forth across the path, trying to stay calm, and failing miserably as tears began rolling down her cheeks. Her bag clanked, not with Nebby, but with as many repels as she could find. She knew she'd seen Nebby bouncing happily northward, she was positive, but she couldn't figure out where the small pokemon had gone. All she could do was check every patch of grass, every rock pile, until it was found. 

She was certain she made an alarming sight--her white dress increasingly covered in dirt, tears tracking down her dusty cheeks--but how she looked didn't matter. Nebby needed her. She paused after crossing a bridge to check behind a bush, around a tree, before returning nervously to the road. 

"Hey, uh, are you alright?" An older man stepped in front of her nervously, face filled with concern. Lillie looked at him and bit her lip. She could easily ask him about Nebby, but what if he was from Aether? If word got out about Nebby, then it'd be bad, really bad. Aether couldn't just march to Kukui's lab and kick down the door, but others easily could…

She realized she'd chewed her lip until it bled. The older man shifted, and sighed. "Is there anyone I can call for you? You don't have to ask me for help, but I can stay with you until help comes."

Lillie was struck by his kindness. Mother had never told her how nice people could be. "No! Thank you, but this…this is something I have to do alone," she replied, before nodding and moving around him. Her search continued, but the kind stranger had interrupted her enough to allow for some thinking.

Nebby seemed drawn to the Tapu ruins. The first time it had escaped its bag was when they'd been close to the Ruins of Conflict in Iki Town. Now that the bridge was destroyed, though, where did Nebby think it was going? Was there anywhere that got close to the ruins along Route 3? Lillie quickly pulled out her PokeDex, opening the map, and--there! Melemele Meadow! It clearly went towards the center of the island--Nebby had to be there!

Lillie ignores the messages from Kukui as she threw the PokeDex back in her bag, replacing it with a repel. It took her some time to fish among the empty canisters; she was running dangerously low. At least now she had a plan, she thought firmly as she sprayed herself down.

 

* * *

 

Lillie's plan did not get her very far, and she stood, frustrated, at the edge of the meadow. A pile of empty repels lay at her feet. She had heard Nebby's chiming call as she entered the meadow, but she had no way of moving forward without protection. She tried, very hard, not to cry. Crying does nothing, her Mother's voice said, but make your face ugly. 

Lillie stared agonizingly at the yellow flowers, gently drifting in the wind. Their lovely scent would've captivated her on any other day--but the call of an oricorio, somewhere nearby, made her dizzy. She was in a safe spot, she reminded herself, well out of the tall flowers and grass that hid all the dangerous, dangerous bird pokemon. Pokemon that might turn on poor, defenseless Nebby at any moment, as the spearows had on the bridge. 

Her mind cast back to only a few days earlier. Moon hadn't been afraid, even though she had no pokemon. She'd run straight to Nebby. She hadn't even looked afraid. She looked nothing like Lillie, though. She was nothing like Lillie. Lillie wasn't brave at all. Just useless, a pretty doll that should've just stayed quiet and done what Mother told her. She was paralyzed, crying, shaking, she couldn't breathe-- 

"Lillie?" A soft voice, from her memories but real, came from behind. Lillie couldn't respond. She heard her move around her side, slowly approaching. "Are you ok?" Moon asked cautiously. Her expression changed when Lillies ugly, blotchy, tear-streaked face came to view, and Moon moved closer, hand outstretched. "Is…is it OK if I touch you?" Lillie managed a nod. 

Moon's hand went to Lillie's back, rubbing circles. A hand squeezed hers, and she squeezed back as a sob tore her throat. "N-Neb-Nebby--" she choked out as Moon looked on, concerned. 

Moon's eyes flashed into the meadow, then back at Lillie. "Here, come here," she said, and pulled Lillie to the shade of a tree near the entrance, gently easing the girl down to the ground. Lillie could barely see through the tears. Moon let go of her hand, and Lillie squeaked sadly, but a moment later a bottle of water was there instead. "Drink this, slowly," Moon said soothingly as she returned to her bag. She quickly produced a small canister of repel. "Here. I'm going in after Nebby. Take this, stay here, and I'll be back soon." Moon grabbed Lillie's bag before she could reply, and marched into the flowers. 

As soon as her arms could move Lillie applied the repel, but her tears wouldn't stop, and her face was reddened now from both crying and shame. Moon had seen Lillie twice now like this. How embarrassing. And she had just…dove into the grasses after Nebby. But Moon had pokemon now. All Lillie had was Nebby, but Nebby couldn't even rely on her. Would Moon even come back? What if Moon was from Aether? What if Moon hurt Nebby? She had only met Lillie once. When Lillie was an ugly, crying wreck. How embarrassing. She hiccuped and sipped at the water, her mind circling in on itself. 

Ten minutes had passed, and Lillie was well entrenched in her misery, when the flowers rustled, and Moon emerged, flailing bag in hand. Lillie gasped, choked on the water, burped some back up, and shot it through her nose as she scrambled to stand again. What did it matter, Moon had already seen her at her worst. 

"Nebby," she choked out, and stumbled to Moon. Moon offered her the bag with a small smile. Lillie immediately cracked the zipper, and was greeted with a disgruntled croon from the small pokemon. 

"It really hates that bag, doesn't it?" Moon laughed, and Lillie laughed with her. The laugh turned into another sob, and Moon was immediately by her side again, rubbing her back. "It's OK, Lillie. Everything's OK now." Lillie's sobs became harder, and soon she was being held by the other girl, clinging to her tightly. 

They stayed like that for some time, until Lillie could breathe again. When she could, she pulled back, grimacing at the amount of fluids on Moon's shirt. "I'm so-sorry, I was just, so, so worried, and I c-can't even…" Her lip trembled again. 

"Kukui called me," Moon said, and Lillie's heart stopped for a moment. "He said you ran off, and he couldn't contact you. I was in the area. Nebby got out again?" and Lillie nodded. Moon looked at the pile of empty repel canisters, still on the ground, and moved to collect them. 

It wasn't until all the canisters were in a plastic bag, tied up and ready to be disposed of, that Moon spoke up again. "You're brave, Lillie," she said softly, and Lillie stared. "You don't have any pokemon, and you don't know this area. Yet you ran all the way up Route 3 to save Nebby." 

"You…you helped Nebby yourself, though. At the bridge," Lillie choked out. 

"I wasn’t thinking. I just…moved, on my own. You had every chance to turn back along the route, yet here you are. And I can at least punch a low-level spearow away, you know? But this route was full of stronger pokemon. And you're still here." Moon had gathered all the cans into a plastic bag, and tied it shut. Lillie looked on incredulously as Moon turned to face her. A sad smile was on her face. "You're incredible, you know?" 

"I did what I had to. Nebby doesn't have anyone but me," Lillie managed weakly, and Moon's grin solidified. She offered Lillie her hand, and pulled her to her feet. The two made their way to the entrance, then south along the Route. Most of the walk was spent silently. Lillie had no idea what to say to the incredible girl next to her. As they passed the kind stranger, he looked at her with surprise. She smiled and gave a thumbs up back, and he looked relieved. 

"If Nebby was…trapped, and couldn't be moved, what would you do?" Moon suddenly asked. 

Lillie looked to Moon with surprise, before thinking back. Back to the lab, to the metal bars that kept Nebby so tightly confined. She shuddered. "I'd do whatever it takes to free it," she replied firmly. She had once. She could again. 

"Even if that meant leaving it alone while you tried?" Moon replied softly.

"I'm sure Nebby would understand if it's for it's sake," she said. 

The walk remained quiet. Lillie wondered about Moon the entire time. As Kukui's shack appeared on the horizon, she felt Nebby move in its bag, giving a muffled "Pew!" She wondered if she'd ever see Moon again. She was going to go on her trials, and Lillie, she'd probably just stay with Kukui. Desperately, she wondered, if she spent more time with her, would her actual bravery rub off? Would Lillie become as strong as Moon said she was? 

"Would--would you like to go shopping with me?" She blurted out, then covered her mouth. Moon looked at her strangely. Lillie remembered how Moon had already seen her, twice, snotty and tear-soaked, and pushed through. "I've been thinking of-of getting a new wardrobe, eventually, and--and could use a friend's advice," she said, gaze not meeting Moon's. "Could you help me?" 

Moon was silent, then, "Of course. Let me have your number." Lillie's heart soared as they exchanged contact information, and she nearly danced the rest of the way to Kukui's lab. For the first time, ever, she had made a friend. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lillie cries more in my fic than she ever did in the game but you can't tell me a sheltered eleven year old child wouldn't be breaking down at every opportunity under her circumstances.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moon takes on Hala's Grand Trial. A decision is made.

_Their hands a chain, their bodies in flight, but to where, where, where does safety live, a place where only the eyes of the moon can follow them--_

It had taken five days. Five days! Five days in the most beautiful region on earth, sure, but three days of circling the same patch of grass, hoping for the perfect combination of attributes, then two days of intense grinding beyond that. But finally, finally, they were ready. Moon's heart thrilled as she walked up the path to Iki Town, the stage in the town center slowly coming into view. She may only have this one chance, and she had been determined to make it count.

Hala stood there, arms crossed, eyes closed in contemplation. To the side, Moon saw Kukui, Hau, and Lillie. If Lillie was fidgeting, hands twisting her bag strap, Hau was positively vibrating; he jumped and shouted when he saw Moon. Kukui only smiled at her. Moon plastered on a small fake smile and gave a stiff wave back at the trio. 

"Alola! I didn't see you at all as I travelled, cousin! Where have you been? The island isn't big enough to get lost on!" Hau opened with a barrage of commentary. Moon didn't respond to his questions, knowing the boy wouldn't think to expect an answer to any. He wasn't a bad kid, Moon reminded herself, just…energetic. Energetic in a way she didn't quite know how to deal with. She didn't interact with children nearly often enough to handle Hau. 

Lillie, on the other hand, offered Moon a small smile, and Moon's fake smile softened into something almost real. Despite Lillie's tears and fears, she had pushed through to protect Nebby. So like Diana, yet so different. Familiar enough for Moon to feel at ease texting the girl every so often; passing her opinion on for different outfits, and offering an understanding confidant for Lillie's near-constant fears. She wondered why Lillie didn't train pokemon; she knew Hala still had the popplio. 

"Alola, cousin! Thank you again for helping Lillie the other day," Kukui said over Hau's babbling. "I'm glad that you were the one who found her." 

"Of course. I apologize for the time it took to get here," Moon offered, smiling up at him. Her first impression of the distractingly shirtless man had definitely been negative, and something told her that Hala's intervention had been his fault, in some way. Meddlesome people made Moon nervous; they were too unpredictable to trust. However, over the past few days, Lillie had messaged her repeatedly, and Moon had gathered that Kukui and his wife had taken her in, providing her with an education, and helping her protect Nebby. Lillie was still relatively innocent, but she expressed nothing but gratitude to the professor. Moon grudgingly decided that, if he had to meddle, at least he was trying to help. 

"Don't worry, cousin! I only hope you've been putting that extra time to good use!" He looked at her assessingly, and she made her fake smile more vacant. She had forgotten how perceptive he was, and how curious he was about her. No, too meddlesome. 

"I only hope I can live up to your expectations," she said demurely, and Kukui laughed sharply at that. 

"Moon! Before we begin, may I have a word with you?" Hala's voice rang out over the plaza, and Moon gratefully jogged over to him on the platform, eager to get away from Kukui's piercing gaze. 

Hala smiled fondly at her, and patted her on the head. Instantly her body was on high alert, and she jumped away, stiffened. Hala froze. Her heart was beating wildly, vision blurred at the edges. She took a few moments to quiet the animalistic part of her begging to punch the older man; she was half his height and a third his weight. It would only break her hand. She forced herself into calm, returning to the fakest smile she could. 

"Please don't touch me," she said evenly. 

"I apologize, I should've asked," Hala replied contritely. 

"I really don't like being touched," she said. 

"I understand. I'll refrain from doing so", he agreed. She didn't detect any malice in his voice. A mistake. 

"What did you want to discuss with me," she asked, eager to move on. 

Hala, clearly as uncomfortable as she was by the situation, jumped in. "Ah, yes. Moon, I just wanted to speak to you briefly about Diana." 

Moon nodded. "I've called her every night. Thank you for keeping your end of the bargain." 

"Yes. It truly has been no burden for me. In fact, I rather enjoy her company. I wanted to make sure you understood that." He looked at her meaningfully, and Moon kept herself from shifting.

"I hope you continue to visit us after I'm done," Moon replied, and Hala's face fell slightly. 

He sighed. "Regardless of what happens here, you need to speak with your mother. A good, long conversation, understand?" 

"I understand," she responded. 

"Hey! Hey! Are you guys ready yet? I want to see your new pokemon! Hey! Moon! Grandpa! Hey!!" 

Hala peered at Hau, who was jumping partially onto the platform. "You calm down, now! You can't rush these things. The proper respect must be given to your opponent before beginning." He returned his gaze to Moon, the bristly mood of earlier displaced with a genuine excitement. "Moon, are you ready to face your Grand Trial?" 

"Yes, Kahuna Hala," she replied, and moved to the other end of the platform. Her mind buzzed with excitement. This might very well be her last battle. Years of study, years of living vicariously, had led here. She was determined to make it matter. 

The match began suddenly. "Mankey, go!" A flash of light, and the small creature appeared at the other end of the field. 

"Grubbin! You're on!" The small creature appeared, chittering excitedly. 

"Karate Chop!" cried Hala. No setup then, eh? That was fine. Grubbin couldn't outspeed a mankey, even at her level, but… 

"Hold steady!" she cried as the hit landed cleanly. Grubbin braced itself, and barely shifted after the blow. "Spark," she shouted immediately, and Grubbin exploded in all directions. The electric blast caught the mankey close, damage heightened by proximity, and it collapsed with a cry. 

"Crabrawler! Go!" Moon thrilled at that. She knew Crabrawler was Hala's strongest pokemon. That he had to pull him so early in the match meant he felt the pressure. Still, she knew what was about to happen. Grubbin was too slow… 

"Spa--" 

"Power-Up Punch", Hala roared, and the crabrawler blurred. Grubbin could barely gather any charge to itself before Crabrawler's fist slammed into it. Grubbin flew off the stage, but before she could land, Moon recalled her. 

Shit. She didn't want to send out Litten--she wasn't certain if the crabrawler had retained its water moves. She also hadn't wanted to show her hand this early, but…"Go! Bagon!" 

"WHAT," shrieked Hau, as the blue dragon appeared. Moon ignored him. 

"Dragon Breath!" But the small dragon was still unused to fighting, and leaving the ball had her disoriented. Not for long, but long enough to-- 

Hala moved quickly and decisively. "Crabrawler! All-Out Pummelling!" His Z-ring shone, and Crabrawler shone with it, rushing to Bagon, and pummelling her mercilessly. Bagon reacted quickly, firing a beam of blue energy directly into the source of the barrage of fists. The move was cut off as Crabrawler flew back and landed with a sickening thud. He was recalled, Hau whooping in the background, and immediately -- "Makuhita! Let's go!" 

Bagon was swaying, and Moon knew she'd go down quickly. Best make it count. "Dragon Breath, again!" Bagon coughed, and spat out the blue beam again. 

The makuhita couldn't dodge it, but Bagon's beam wasn't her strong suit to begin with, and without being at close range, the strength was lessened. Makuhita was barely scratched. "Arm Thrust", called Hala, and the makuhita commenced its assault. While it was slow, its actions were deliberate, and powerful enough that Bagon couldn't recenter herself. Bagon collapsed on the third hit. 

Moon recalled Bagon, and whispered gratitude into her pokeball. "Go! Torracat!" Hala blanched as her evolved starter appeared. Before he even opened his mouth, she acted: "Fire Fang!" A same-type attack, combined with Makuhita's abysmal speed and defenses…Torracat engulfed himself in flames, bounded forward, and latched himself around Makuhita's arm. He screamed, once, then collapsed. Torracat disengaged as Makuhita was recalled. 

Behind her, Hau was whooping excitedly, babbling about Bagon. Lillie had disappeared--probably put off by the pained cries. Kukui looked almost as excited as Hau. And Hala, he looked proud. 

"That was wonderful, Moon." He didn't offer his hand, thankfully, instead opting to give her a small bow, which Moon returned. 

"Thank you for the battle," she murmured back dizzily. She didn't listen as Hala gave her some sort of celebratory speech, another Z crystal, a ride pager…instead she thought back on the battle. She should've trained more with Grubbin. She still would've been slow, but as a Charjabug she could've taken more hits, and even before then, she would've learned Acrobatics, which would've taken out mankey and makuhita in one blow. Bagon had no physical attacks aside from the weak Rage and the ill-typed Bite; she should've trained her until she learned Headbutt, at least. At least Torracat had evolved, just the night before, fast and strong. She could've done so much better. She sighed, letting Kukui and Hala talk over her head, absorbed in her thoughts as they all walked towards her home.

 

* * *

 

Diana had pounced the moment Luna closed the door. "You're back! I've missed you! Hala messaged me; you passed your Grand Trial, right? I'm so proud of you! I knew you could do it! Can I see your new friends? Show me, show me!!"

Luna smiled, letting herself be shaken and squeezed, before disentangling herself. Diana's crow lines had only been faint spiderwebs when Luna had left; now, they were distinct even when she wasn't smiling. Luna hoped that wasn't her fault. "Sure, of course. Let me introduce you." She knelt to scratch Meowth's ears before releasing her pokemon, one by one. Torracat came first, and he and Meowth stared each other down stiffly, before Meowth yawned and went to lie on a couch cushion. Next was Grubbin, who squeaked and scuttled straight to the TV, which was attuned to some showdown in Johto. The content didn't seem to matter; Grubbin appeared more interested in the static of the screen. Finally, Bagon, who Luna carefully instructed to be careful. Bagon had never been in a house before, only pokecenters; she lumbered curiously through the small house, careful not to touch anything. 

"They're all so precious," Diana cooed, and Luna smiled. "Now, sit! Sit! And tell me, tell me everything you've done these past two weeks!" Luna sat and started to recount her short trip around the island. Diana went to the kitchen and poured two cups of warm tea. She had clearly had the pot ready to go for the moment Luna returned. Her heart seized painfully. 

Diana was mostly quiet as Luna recounted the basic facts of her journey, but once she finished she began asking questions. "I've heard there are pikachu in Hau'oli City! Hau has one, according to Hala. They're pretty cute; why are you not travelling with one?" 

"Oh, I looked into them before I started out. The typing for alolan raichu is definitely interesting, and they're pretty fast, but there's not much else going for it," Luna explained. 

Diana nodded thoughtfully. "Still, there are plenty of cute pokemon on this island. Surely one of them would've been strong?" 

"Hmm. I was considering a pikipek, if only for the battle with Hala, but its final evolution is too slow and lacks any bulk to it. Most of the bug pokemon here just don't stand out, if they evolve at all. I saw a few cute ghost pokemon in the Hau'oli Cemetery, but all three had problems. Gastly is strong, but I'd have to trade them eventually for the final evolution, and I'm not certain I'd be able to do that. A misdreavus could theoretically be useful, but there are so many better options out there, and besides, I'd have to find a dusk stone to evolve it. And drifloon, well, it has no strong same-type moves, and terrible defenses." 

"I never knew you had such high standards," Diana teased. "I thought you'd be able to make any pokemon great, with how intensely you've studied theory." 

"Some are just better than others," Luna shrugged. "I could do well regardless of my team, but, well. I'd prefer to be selective, and focus on the pokemon I know will shine, instead of just collecting anything that wanders my way and sending them to the box when something better comes along." 

Diana nodded. "Still, there are strong pokemon here. Hala was just talking about some of them the other day. Were none of them strong enough for you?" 

"No…but these three are the only ones I wanted," Luna admitted. "And even then, I have my misgivings for one of them. I'm not certain grubbin will be capable of keeping up with the rest of my team for the challenges that lie ahead..."

"Are there other pokemon, on the other islands? That you'd want to train?" 

Diana looked nervous. Luna felt the conversation would go this direction. "What will happen if I say yes?" she asked cautiously.

Diana smiled hesitantly. "You would go, then."

Luna was silent. "Are…is that okay with you?" she said quietly.

Diana beamed. "Nothing would make me happier than to see you continue your journey. You've wanted this for so long, Luna. I'm not going to stop you."

"Will you be okay if I'm not here?"

Diana nodded. "Hala has been lovely. He comes every day with food, and his stories are wonderful! He's even brought me some needles and yarn, so I can start knitting again, and offered to help me ship out items, so I can sell what I make."

Luna peered at her. "You really like Hala, don't you?" she said teasingly. Then Diana's face reddened, and Luna gasped. "Oh, no. Ohhh, no. You REALLY like Hala, don't you? Is that SERIOUSLY your type? Wow, how old is he? " She laughed, and Diana sputtered protests. "Well, whatever. I'm glad you feel that way. Just be careful, ok? There's another agent on the ground on Ula'ula, but that doesn't mean I want to try to move again."

"I…I know," Diana replied. "I know it  won't go anywhere, but…he's so nice. And he's…he's the first man I've met in a long time that I'm not scared of, you know? I'm just happy to feel this way."

Luna nodded. Hala may have been large, and a capable trainer, but he was always gentle and considerate. "You could do worse. And, you know, don't write yourself off that quickly, okay? You're a great woman, you're a great cook, you can do things with yarn that aren't even in the books." Her voice was soft, and Diana smiled timidly.

"I'll do my best," she replied, and Luna's heart burst. Diana was her world, had been everything for the past ten years. They had clung to each other, and built walls between themselves and everyone else. Something about Alola--the gentle, warm breeze, the smell of salt and greenery--had eroded those walls for both of them. It made Luna happy, so happy, to see Diana connect to someone new…but at the same time, her world was leaving her behind. Diana had been very eager to have Luna leave. Her guts twisted, with an acrid combination of sorrow, rejection, and bitterness.

Diana must have seen something in her eyes, because she leaned forward and grasped Luna's hands. "Luna, you should know. I love you more than anything in this world, and I always will." Her thumbs stroked Luna's small hand gently. "You've been by my side these past ten years, and…and I don't think I'd still be here if not for you. And I have missed you, these past two weeks. But…you're happy, Luna. You don't look like a caged pokemon, anymore. And…and we both know that it can't last forever. But while it does, let's collect enough happiness for a lifetime. Okay?"

"Okay," Luna replied, hoarse. Diana smiled at her.

"Luna, I am the proudest sister in the world. Remember, no matter where you go, that your biggest fan will be right here, okay?"

"I love you too," Luna replied. "I'm going to do it. I'm going to complete the trials. Just watch me. I'll be the strongest there ever was." Strong enough to set you free, she promised silently, as the tears overflowed. The night finished with Luna cradled in Diana's arms, eyes burning with a decade of unshed tears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, we're at the end of the slow-ass establishment chapters. Things will definitely be speeding up from here.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gladion struggles, is given a glimpse of a wider perspective, and begins to move forward.

"This next battle is gonna be the BOMB!"

"We're gonna steal so many pokeMON!"

"We're gonna make Boss G so PROUD!"

"Yeah! Gladion, being a grump isn't ALLOWED!"

"Shut the fuck up," Gladion snarls back, and the two grunts don't even flinch. Don't they know how much better he is than them? He could kick their asses all the way up and down Route 5, the idiots. The grunts looked at him side-eyed, and anger flared. "You guys suck at rhyming, you know that, right?"

"Yo, no one asked for your opinions."

"Rhyming is what makes us such great minions." She looked surprised at her own word choice, and her partner looked at her appreciatively. Gladion's anger only flared higher.

"This is worthless. Both of you are worthless. I'm not going to wait around for some idiot trainer to challenge you two idiot grunts. Good luck figuring anything out without me," he spat out. Before he could see the looks on their faces, he turned and ran into the bushes. They may have called out behind him, but he didn't hear. He wasn't about to spend any more time with those fucking losers and their loser rhymes.

By the time he had broken through to Paniola Town, his rage had sublimated to sadness. As fucking usual, Gladion, wonder child and fuckup runaway, had fucked everything up again. He sniffled. Their rhymes weren't even THAT horrible. He just had felt upset, because he lacked any freestyle rhyming talent, and couldn't join in. As though he'd ever tell those two. Or anyone. As though he had anyone to tell.

Gladion's chest ached and eyes stang, and he furiously tried to settle his expression. He'd be damned if anyone saw him cry. He wasn't that weak, to cry in front of others. He had no reason to cry. He'd only insulted two of his teammates, who had been having fun, for no reason…

He was marching through the town, face contorted in a grimace that had others looking at him with alarm and avoiding their gaze. Good, he thought. He was someone they NEEDED to avoid. He didn't need their fucking pity. None of them would ever understand what he'd been through. No one out there would ever be able to understand…

His eyes began to burn again. Fuck, fuck, he thought, as he walked faster to a building just south of the pokecenter. Not in front of people, he thought, as he leapt the fence and, out of sight, moved aside leaves and twigs to reveal a path in the bushes. He went far enough to ensure that there was no one on the other side, then padded back into the middle, sat down, and brought his knees to his chest. He leaned forward, and allowed himself to start sobbing quietly.

He felt a twitch at his hip, and mindlessly grabbed the ball, releasing Type:Null. The pokemon stretched, before sitting nest to Gladion silently, staring at him. Gladion didn't care. It had only wanted some fresh air, out of sight, and clearly Gladion wasn't going to move any time soon. It wasn't trying to comfort him. Not even his pokemon cared if he cried. The thought made him cry harder.

Back at Aether, he had occasionally snuck down to the labs to watch Faba and his team work with the Type:Nulls. They hadn't been warm to the creatures, but they fed them good food and paid attention to them. Gladion had always been torn between jealousy and shame. He had eaten well, too, and dressed well, and allowed to play with all the pokemon in the top-level conservatory. But, at the end of every session, Faba would pat each Type:Null on the head-helmet, and Gladion couldn't remember the last time anyone had touched him. Faba would tell them "good job" when they performed well in tests, and Gladion couldn't remember the last time Mother had even so much as looked at him.

So, when the creatures' growth stagnated, and Faba became angry and frustrated, Gladion had felt for them. And, when Faba stopped working with them, and put their pokeballs in a locked box, and when that box began to accumulate dust, Gladion had barely even thought about the decision. He wondered if Faba or Mother had even noticed that their children were gone.

"Mama," he whimpered, then choked. How fucking pathetic. Crying for Mother at a time like this? How stupid was he? He was fifteen, not a child who cried for their mother. But it had helped eased the sharp pain in his chest, so he tried it again. "Mama…" he tested. "Lillie…Daddy…" A rough laugh escaped from him. "The only people who ever hugged me.", he muttered.

His crying jag had responded to the pathetic cries, though, and he slowly stopped crying. His head felt fuzzy, and the pain in his chest, while lessened, hadn't yet disappeared. He sat, miserable and silent, silence broken only by the occasional sob…

And a small headbutt to his shoulder. Gladion looked over with surprise. Type:Null was leaning forward, looking into Gladion's eyes. Something it had never done. Gladion saw something in there…was it fear? Hesitation? Type:Null leaned in again, stopped, then firmly butted Gladion again. Its head leaned in further, pressed into Gladion's chest, and stayed there.

Gladion's head was throbbing from his crying jag, and his eyes burned, and he was very, very confused…but he wrapped his arms around Type:Null's neck anyways. A low hum came from the pokemon, and it rubbed its head against Gladion's wet shirt. He hugged tighter. He didn’t even care that he'd started to cry again.

* * *

 

He'd snuck back into Paniola Town, to visit the pokecenter's restrooms, and winced at the leftover blotchiness. He'd stayed in the bushes with Type:Null for an hour after he'd finally, for good, finished crying, but his eyes were still swolen, and a redness lingered along his cheekbones. He dug around in his bag for his short eyeliner pencil and near-empty powder compact, and quickly applied just enough of each to cover the aftereffects.

After that, he'd returned through the bushes, then wandered aimlessly to the east. He wasn't quite ready to find the two idiot grunts again, particularly given the nature of their assignment. He was a pokemon thief himself, but it never stopped him from feeling horrible, when the grunts accosted terrified young trainers. Maybe if he killed enough time they'd be done for the day, and he wouldn't have to watch any of it.

He was approaching the Battle Dome, and was alarmed to see a tall man speaking loudly, wearing nothing but a lab coat and shorts. Sure, it was warm in Alola, but that's overkill, right? Beside him a boy in a high ponytail was bouncing up and down, mouth open excitedly, and--was that a girl or a boy? Oh, that was a halter top--a small, dark-skinned girl, still and silent, looking past the shirtless man. She was smiling, but it was definitely fake. Her eyes met Gladion's, and a quick flash ran down his spine. What the fuck?

Angrily, he marched forward, to hear the man speaking. "…taken out the most pokemon, yeah, and has the most pokemon left will emerge the winner. Woo!"

"Woo!" echoed the boy shrilly. The man noticed the girl looking away, and followed her gaze to Gladion.

"Oh! Are you thinking of challenging the Dome?" he asked brightly. "Come on! Come join in on the fun!"

"Yeah, cousin! Let's go battle!" the boy said as he dashed forward, stopping to bounce excitedly at Gladion's feet. How annoying. "I'm Hau! And that's Moon! Come onnnn, battle with us, it'll be fun!"

"Battles aren't fun," Gladion retorted. "Battles are something we do instead of punching each other in the face to get what we want."

The boy's smile didn't dim. "Battles are totally fun! And if there's something you want, they'll give you prizes here at the Dome, right?" He turned to the older man, who nodded with a bright smile. The girl still hadn't moved. She was alright, Gladion guessed, but the man and boy were rekindling the irritation he'd felt at the mindlessly happy grunts.

"Fine, I'll take you on," he growled. The boy, immune to his attempt at intimidation, yelped happily. "Kukui, Moon, you'll come too, right? Moon, you have to, I haven't seen you at all since we got to Akala! You've passed the water trial, right? I can tell! What's your team look like now? I wanna see, I wanna know!"

The girl's fake smile didn't waver, her eyes void of emotion. Gladion felt a surpising amount of jealousy at her poker face. "Only one," she said. "There are some things I must see to, so I won't have time for more than one round."

"Well then! Let's go!" cried the man, and before he knew it, there he was, in the middle of a square in the Battle Dome. It wasn't the main, headliner square, but there were still a few people idling in the crowds.

Time to blow them away, Gladion thought. "Go! Type:Null!" His strange pokemon appeared, and a few people in the audience--and Kukui, and the girl Moon, he noticed--focused on it with interest. The man sent out a rockruff, and the boy sent a dartrix. The girl hesitated, he saw, then sent out a mareanie. Gladion huffed to himself. Weak, all of them. This would be over quickly.

Before it began, he quickly formed a plan. The Rockruff would have to go first. It was the only pokemon being led by an adult. The dartrix next, since it looked pretty strong. Then it would be simple to wipe out the weak, spongey looking mareanie.

When the bell rang, everything exploded at once. "Tackle the rockruff," he cried, and Type:Null obliged. The small pokemon couldn't dodge quickly enough, but it had time to send out a barrage of rocks. Miraculously, Type:Null dodged. Gladion almost celebrated, when a blur of green, and maybe purple? No, that was green, that was a razor leaf, from the dartrix, had coated the battlefield. The rockruff fell with a cry, out, and Type:Null keened in pain.

"Hang in there," Gladion called. "Tackle that bird fucker!"

"Language!" called the older man as he recalled his pokemon, but it didn't matter. Gladion was focused, and Type:Null could feel it, as it slammed into the dartrix. The bird didn't quite go flying--it regained control midair and stayed there, hovering--but Gladion could tell the hit had landed strong.

"Peck!" cried the boy.

"Bite it when it tries!" Gladion replied.

Type:Null braced itself, and dartrix descended in a blur. Its peck managed to land--"Damnit!" Gladion cried, to the disparaging look of the man Kukui again--but Type:Null swiveled, biting down hard from behind where the wing connected to its body. The dartrix thrashed, too panicked to send out another razor leaf as the younger boy commanded, then flopped loosely in Type:Null's jaw. The pokemon released it as Gladion whooped.

"Two down," he crowed, then turned to the small girl, grinning widely. "Time's up, kid. Maybe wait a few years before trying to play with the big boys, huh?"

For a moment, he felt an overwhelming rage in the arena, and he froze. Then the girl had returned to her blank smile--except less blank. Yeah, she was definitely showing more teeth than earlier. Her eyes remained cold--colder, even. What the fuck? That razor leaf had to have hit her pathetic little sea blob.

"Tackle," he cried, and Type:Null lept forward. The blob couldn't move fast enough to dodge, and given the damage the razor leaf had surely done, it was over for them. He smirked, then stopped. The blob was still upright, with barely any damage to show. It should be out, he thought furiously, and he began to shout another command when--

"Scald," she said, and a jet of boiling water slammed into Type:Null at close range. Gladion panicked, trying to calm down. It didn't matter, Type:Null had only taken two hits, and that water jet didn't look strong--

Type:Null fell over, and didn't move.

"No!" cried Gladion, as he leapt into the ring. He knelt by Type:Null's side, and found him breathing--but a purple foam was at the corner of his mouth, and his body was sticky--

"Don't touch him," the girl said behind him, and he turned to find her holding a cloth and a few bottles of liquid. "He has toxic poison all over him. Here, wipe him down with this acetone, it's great for getting sticky poisons off of things. And here's an antidote, it should keep him from being in too much pain before you can get to the pokecenter."

Gladion numbly took both items, administering the medicine quickly before beginning to wipe Type:Null down. He had seen something during that razor leaf, he thought. Stupid, stupid, stupid. "Your blob isn't even that strong," he complained. "You barely did anything, and I didn't notice you. I wrote you off."

"That's why I won," the girl--Moon--replied evenly. "That's why Mareanie was stronger than all three of you. Being flashy and showy draws attention to yourself, so I chose the member of my team that, objectively, looks the weakest."

"It is weak," he growled. "How the fuck did you survive the leaf blade? How the fuck did you survive my tackle after the leaf blade?"

"I wanna know that too, Moon!" The shirtless wonder had appeared next to them. The boy was babbling something in the background, but all three ignored him. "And why did you choose to apply Toxic to young…"

"Gladion", he supplied.

"Yes! Why did you apply toxic to Gladion's…"

"Type:Null"

"Gladion's Type:Null?"

"Wide guard," she replied. "It saved me from the rock throw and the razor leaf. As for the rest, I knew rockruff would go down first, since it had the most apparent type mismatch with dartrix. Dartrix is strong, but Hau isn't tactically minded--he's here for fun, not to win, and no matter how strong his pokemon are, that limits their potential. Type:Null was almost certain to remain at the end."

By now the four were walking slowly to the pokemon center, well outside of the Dome. Gladion blinked. Kukui's eyes sparked. Hau looked only mildly offended. "Hey, that's not fair, Moon! I'm here to win, too!" But he was smiling, definitely unbothered by his loss.

"Why are you so damn happy," Gladion snapped at the boy. Hau didn't look phased. "You lost. You. Fucking. Lost. I was going all out--" and now Gladon felt legitimate anger beginning, "--and you, were you even taking it seriously?"

"Of course!" he replies happily. "I was seriously enjoying it!"

"But you were holding back. Which means you weren't enjoying it."

"But I was?" Hau looked confused, and still not at all upset. Gladion gave up.

"How annoying," he muttered, before turning away and marching off. He heard the annoying boy calling from behind him, but he'd had enough of his stupid, happy face. He'd heal Type:Null in Paniola--he still had a zubat to protect himself, after all.

He couldn't afford to hold back, or just enjoy things, whatever that even fucking meant. He needed to be strong. The strongest. To protect himself. To protect Null.

"You and I, we have to make it on our own," he whispered to its ball. "We can't ever forget that." After all, he'd finally remembered where he'd heard the name Moon before. Only a few weeks earlier, a few grunts on Melemele had tried to interfere with a trial, and they'd been royally crushed by some kid trainer with that name. Now he understood why, and he understood that Team Skull's ability to keep him safe was nearing its limits.

She was scary. Cute, but scary. His mind wandered mournfully to his own outfit. He had wanted to shock people, make them afraid and aghast, so he'd dressed himself all in black, and had his hair cut the way he saw in a photo for a punk band once, and glared at people, and posed in a way that looked cool. All of that had been completely overshadowed by that kid. He thought of the flash of anger, her toothy grin, and shuddered. Then he wondered what she'd look like with a genuine smile. His gut twisted. Why was he thinking about that, anyways? His feelings were confused, but his actions weren't. He didn't know where he'd go next with his life, but he knew, with certainty, that the way forward needed to make a wide detour around the focus of her wrath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No force on this earth can convince me Gladion isn't an edgy scene kid who regrets being born too late for MCR. Secretly into sappy female singer-songwriters, but renames all the songs on his phone so no one can ever know. Being 14 is rough. You'll get there, kid. 
> 
> Moon's Child Crush Charm strikes again, but mostly because Gladion is lowkey awed by her. He won't ever understand himself, but later that night, a tenant at the Motel complained to the front desk about "All that fucking Adele blasting from the room next to me"


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moon meets Lusamine. Everything is moving faster.

"Pyuuuuuuu!"

The small, squishy black creature let out a cry as it soared through the air. Moon wondered if it was out of glee? Why else would the little things keep coming up to the beach every day? Besides, if they truly disliked it, they'd just vomit their innards all over whoever tried to throw them. She continued along Hano Beach, mind wandering as she considered what would come next.

Her team had grown and changed considerably since she'd come to Akala Island. She had been planning to keep Taser, her grubbin-turned-charjabug, until after her water trial, but a lucky trade for a bounsweet on route 5 had her sending the little green brick home early, to keep Diana safe. Her older sister had complained about how uncute it was, but she had also been sending photos of it snuggling into an electric blanket, so she hadn't bought into it that much.

The bounsweet--Bouncee, what an unoriginal name--had been a wonderful surprise. She wondered if the naive girl who traded for the granbull even understood how deep its potential ran. The jolly pokemon was insanely fast, and incredibly strong--Moon had no way of checking its genetic, inherited values, but she'd bet good money that it had the highest possible potential for its speed and attack power. That, on top of its lightning-fast learning pace, had already led to its evolution to a tsareena. Bouncee would be headlining the fight with Olivia tomorrow, and Moon would be surprised if she needed to use anyone else.

Still, she needed to remain vigilant. Strategy and tactics could never fully account for the random surprises that came with any serious battle.

If Bouncee fell, against all odds, Mareanie might be the next best bet. Or maybe she should send him in first? Toxic Spikes, after all, was best deployed early in the match. Plus, still in his pre-evolutionary form, he'd be lucky to last more than two turns. His best use would have him running setup, she decided.

But if Bouncee fell, who would sweep? Not Torracat. He'd get completely overwhelmed by the type mismatch. It'd have to fall to the newly-evolved Shelgon. It wasn't a bad bet; her defense was high enough that she'd last more than a few hits. If Bouncee's effectiveness carried through, that was all she'd need.

She refused to think about it. She was overthinking the match--she knew that, she knew that very well--but she didn't want to think about it. Stats, EVs, and IVs, not bullshit legends. Natures, moves, and types, not hysterical folktales. She was strong, and getting stronger, and soon nothing would be able to stop her, and all of that would mean even less in the face of her overwhelming might. It would all be over soon, and Bouncee would help, finishing off Olivia's pokemon quickly…she clung to that line of thought, restarting the match runthrough in her head. It helped.

Moon knelt to grab another black blob. It squeaked and wiggled in her hand, seemingly excited for its nightly flight. Moon obliged the creature, and flung it with all her might. It didn't fly very far, with her spindly arms, but she doubted it would really mind. After all, it always had tomorrow to try to fly again.

* * *

Moon almost resented how much she'd overthought Olivia's battle. Bouncee was lightning fast, and trop kick hit hard, and every single one of Olivia's pokemon was immediately dispatched, flying past the Kahuna's shocked face, before the poison from toxic spikes could even do any damage. The fight with Kiawe had been harder.

At least that left plenty of time for a side trip, she thought as she made her way back to Hano Grand Resort. She wondered how long she'd have to wait. Surpisingly, though, she saw him as she approached--a tall, white-clad figure, with the strangest goggles she'd ever seen, and beside him…she quickly tapped down the irritation she felt at the sight of the loud figure beside Faba. He's a nice person, she repeated. A nice person. She assumed her mask, a semivacant gaze, a fake smile.

"Hey! Moon! Did you pass your Trial? How did it go? You never told me what your team looks like after the Dome!" Ah, it began immediately, as expected. She tuned him out and turned to the older man.

"Hello, Mister Faba. I understand you had something to show us?"

"Just Faba is fine, dear child." By now Moon was used to it, and could keep the empty face intact, but it still sent bristles of irritation up her spine. "You have passed your second Trial. As such, I'd like to extend an invitation, to you and Master Hau, to visit the Aether Foundation headquarters, in Aether Paradise." He gave a grand smile, and Hau bounced next to him, clearly delighted.

His delivery was laced with a sincere amount of pomposity. How irritating. Still, the Aether Foundation clearly had a lot of sway in Alola, if their physical presence on the islands was anything to go by. Moon was pleased with the trajectory of her battling strength, but she knew she needed to start making serious connections. That was the only reason she'd gone to the fucking lab yesterday. Aether could be very, very useful.

"I'd be delighted," she responded, and Faba smiled at her.

"Perfect! If the two of you have no other plans, we could leave immediately…?"

"I am free, yes."

"Of course, cousin!"

"Wonderful! Now, let us be off! To the harbor, to paradise!" the man said, as he moved forward with long strides. Moon tried not to look too inelegant as she struggled to keep up with him--did he realize he was a solid two feet taller than her? What an irritating man.

A quick walk and a short boat ride later, they had arrived. Moon wondered how they kept the giant structure so luminescently clean with all the ocean spray. Faba was greeted frequently by other white-coated members, but not a single one received even so much as a nod of the head.

"This, dear children, is Miss Wick," he declared, as they approached a woman with carefully coiffed hair talking with the receptionist. She turned and smiled warmly at them, positively emanating a motherly aura. Moon, sensitive as always to the emotions of those around her, could tell the woman's smile was genuine. She was also impressively buxom. Who even made a dress like that? That sweater looked very comfortable. She wondered idly if the motherly-ness might cause her to give Moon a hug? She looked very nice to hug.

"Thank you, Chief Faba, for bringing them along. You didn't have to do that, but it certainly made things easier."  
"Your gratitude is noted, Miss Wicke," he replied. "Well then, I'll be off. Enjoy your stay in paradise!" Moon was glad to see him leave. She could barely deal with Hau, much less a second irritant.

"Now, let me explain ourselves," Wicke began, walking slowly through the facilities. Her pace was much shorter than Faba's, perfectly measured for her two smaller accompaniments. "We, the Foundation, were established as a pokemon conservation organization by the President's father. We formally established ourselves in Alola a little more than ten years ago." They had stepped into a strange triangular elevator, and Wick pressed the button for the highest floor. "Ever since, we've striven to connect ourselves with the local culture. Thus, when trialgoers such as yourselves reach the midway point, we invite you to the Aether Paradise, in order to better acquaint ourselves." The elevator slowed and stopped, and the rails were lowered, releasing the trio to the lush greenhouse around them.

Moon had read of rehabilitative conservatories before, but was impressed at the size and thought put into this one. The environment was carefully crafted to emulate the natural Alolan environment. Wicke led them through the walkway, explaining more of Aether's goals and purpose. Conservation services weren't quite what Moon needed, but she supposed it was still good to feed this connection.

Soon, they approached an open platform, and what looked to be a cone of blond hair? Was there a pokemon like that? Then the cone rose, a pair of heeled legs appearing at the bottom, and it turned--not a pokemon--to reveal a sharply dressed woman. She smiled at the pair. Hau looked overwhelmed, and for one thankful moment, he was quiet.

"Ah…you must be Moon and Hau. Welcome to Aether Paradise. I am the President, but please, just call me Lusamine." Her smile, carefully crafted, was warm and tender.

"Wow! You know who we are?" Hau sputtered. Moon applauded his ability to form complete sentences. The poor boy, she'd noticed, was very weak to pretty women.

"Of course," she replied with a delicate laugh. "We have heard much of you. Especially you, Moon," she said turning to her. "You have been very brave, to so continuously clash with Team Skull. You've saved several trainers, and several pokemon, through your actions. I'd like to extend my personal thanks to you."

Moon chilled. She did recall facing off against the ragtag rapping grunts on several occasions, but hadn't really thought much of it. How did this Lusamine know so specifically about that? Was Team Skull stronger than she'd thought, that beating their lackeys four or five times really made that big of a splash? Did anyone else know, she thought, panic rising. How far had the information spread?

"I'm glad there are people like you, who travel because they love pokemon…there are so many, like Team Skull, who harm pokemon for their own selfish reasons, who fail to properly treasure pokemon. They cannot be forgiven," Lusamine said, and Moon relaxed a bit. Lusamine seemed to have a personal, emotional response to Team Skull. It was likely she simply kept close tabs on their actions. Besides, none of the rank-and-file travelling trainers had recognized Moon. She was still flying under the radar. She was still safe.

She ruminated on this as Hau and Lusamine chatted amicably, lost in thought, when--

Every cell in her body sang, the same note she heard every night in her nightmares. She froze. Lusamine, Hau, and Wicke looked confused, then alarmed. The air, behind Lusamine, shuddered, twisted. For a split second, barely perceptible, the room was blisteringly hot--then so cold, so cold--then empty, scent and sensation flatlined. The wrongness began to crack, flakes of reality floating away to dissipate, then pulsed, blue and indigo and purple. A white, undulating appendage slid through, longer and longer, eventually revealling a bonnet-like cap. The creature cried, static and fuzz, filling Moon's mind. Could she move? Could she breathe?

Her hand was somehow grasping a pokeball, any one of them, and she watched at a distance as her hand fling it forward. Shelgon appeared, roaring. Could she speak? "Duh--cluh--" she squeaked. Shelgon, bless its stubborn heart, had been with her for so long, and knew immediate what was required of her. She enveloped her claws in energy, swiped at the strange ethereal creature that creeped slowly through the crack in reality. It let out another cry, scraping sound against the empty air, before withdrawing. Everything pulled inward, briefly, and a loud CRACK caused all present to flinch away. When their gaze returned upwards, the wormhole was gone, like it had never been there at all.

Moon heard them speak around her. The air had regained flavor, temperature, movement. She was surprised she could tell, since she couldn't feel anything at all. Her mind was still full of the static, the fuzz, the light that took her apart. The world lost color. Oh, she realized as her knees sank, her torso tilted forward. She wasn't breathing. Soon, it all washed away, and she was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally done with establishment chapters, into the meat and grit of things! 
> 
> The Vikavolt line could've been so good. SO GOOD. 145SpA, what is that, so good. 43Spd, are you kidding meeeee. 
> 
> Her Current Team:  
> Torracat (M)  
> Shelgon (F)  
> Mareanie (M)  
> Tsareena {"Bouncee"} (F)


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kukui and Moon come to an understanding

Kukui no longer had time for a morning jog. This didn't bother him in the slightest--it wasn't like he was about to become flabby, with all the running around on the islands he did these days. To Heahea, to pass more paperwork to Kahili and her manager. To Malie City, to try and talk Nanu around over sushi. Back to Akala, to Olivia's shop, to pass over the same paperwork and ignore the impressively sour glare she always fixated on his ring. To Mount Lanakila, to greet the legion of Kanto construction laborers. To Hau'Oli, to discuss the building permits and construction progress with the Building and Housing Department. To Heahea, again, for a rushed lunch with his extremely patient and lovely wife…

It was exhausting, stressful, and he was acutely worried about the mileage he was putting on his boat. He gripped the wheel tightly; it had begun to turn more loosely, and every wave made it shudder in his grasp. He'd have to take it to the shop, and hopefully his busying about the islands wouldn't tire out the ride charizards too much in the meantime.

Besides, he hadn't felt this excited since the weeks leading up to his wedding. A sparkler had taken up permanent residence in his chest; his smiles had become genuine, and his vivacity surged with new vigor. It was happening--actually, legitimately happening--a real, honest-to-god League, completion estimated in a month and a half.

He wondered if that would be enough time. For, as swept along as he had let himself become by all the frantic assembly, he hadn't nearly forgotten what may be the most important item on the list. The gleaming jewel atop the crown of his accomplishment. The keystone that would hold everything together, legitimize the proceedings in a way that a fancy mountaintop building and reams of paperwork could only outline. A champion. A strong champion.

And his top candidate for champion had not left her home for at least a week.

Of course, she'd been seen in her backyard, or on the beaches during sunset as the moon rose. But she was not progressing in her Trials, not cultivating the terrifying strength that had all the defeated captains gossiping furiously. Olivia had only agreed to the League position due to what was, by her account, an overwhelmingly one-sided assault from the child.

"No one, in the past seven years I've been doing this, has taken me out so quickly," she'd confided during a rare moment not looking at Kukui's ring and muttering about Tinder. "Sure, I don't use my strongest team, but that's to scale to where the kids tend to be at that stage. And sure, some kids overtrain in the caves, getting themselves overpowered before trying to knock me down. But she had come straight to me, more or less, after Kiawe. She faced me four days after beating him. It usually takes kids two weeks to get through all the trainers between Wela and here. Kiawe, he said that she hadn't been overleveled for him. Just strong, like she was with me, and smart, in a way he hadn't been ready for. I want a champ who's actually scary, a champ that's actually a challenge. That's her. Only her."

Kukui had agreed, and Olivia had signed on. Both of them had never imagined that a child of such overwhelming talent would just…give up. And yet, as far as anyone could tell, she had.

Hala had been the one to break the news to Kukui. He'd been visiting Moon's mysterious mother every day, even after Moon had returned home.

"Although I haven't seen the child," he'd said over drinks, as they pushed through the financial documentation two nights ago. "Diana says she barely leaves her room save to eat. She's worried for her, but such an independent child…she hasn't been able to find the reason for Moon's isolation."

"Did she lose?" Kukui had asked. Moon was a child, and strong at that, and stubborn. She had probably never lost a match before. It could easily shatter her ego. If that was the case, Kukui only hoped she'd heal those traits of hers--they were part of what made her so mesmerizing.

"No," Hala responded thoughtfully. He stroked his moustache--which had become markedly more groomed as time went on. Was he preparing his image for the League? Why would he care now, after being Kahuna for longer than anyone could remember? "Diana said that she wasn't necessarily upset. More…stressed? She's never seen Moon like this."

"Perhaps she just missed her mother? Wanted to come home?"

"Then why would she isolate herself in her room?"

"Maybe she doesn't want her mother to see how stressed she is. Maybe she just wants to relax in the comforts of her own home."

"Maybe," Hala hummed. "She did come from Kanto before here, correct? Perhaps she is homesick."

"Culture shock is certainly a possibility," Kukui had responded thoughtfully. Then, a stroke of inspiration had him grinning widely. "I have an idea. I'll be visiting them, after the construction team arrives. I know just the place to get her spirits up." After that, their conversation had moved back to the questions of bank accounts and financial portfolios.

Kukui was mulling over the conversation when he arrived at the Hau'Oli City docks. He was quick to tie his boat up, get the keys to the boat mechanic, and soon he was walking purposefully towards Moon's home. He had a plan for getting her spirits up, as he'd told Hala. However, he wasn't quite sure how he'd get Moon out of her room. If even her mother, whom she'd cared for for many years, couldn't move her, how could he?

He hadn't found an answer, but here he was, before the door to their cozy cottage. He knocked twice, and heard shuffling on the other side. "One moment," came a muffled voice, and soon he found himself facing Diana. The woman smiled, although not as warmly as she had at Hala. He had introduced Kukui to her, as he lived two minutes away. He also served as backup, for when Hala was unable to bring the woman groceries or take her packages to the post office. She hadn't been able to look at Kukui, initially, and his first few visits had him merely leaving bags by her front door, and waiting for her to begin unlocking things before leaving. Now, at least, she was able to open the door before he left, although she still left the chain lock latched. He'd never actually entered her home; He hoped the circumstances would allow the exception.

"Alola, cousin. I understand that Moon is here?" he asked politely, smile radiating. Diana seemed weakened by him, and looked him up and down; he belatedly wondered if he should've put on a shirt.

"Y-yes," she said in a near-whisper. "She's…still in her room. I don't think she'll come out, even for you."

"I figured that would be the case," he sighed. "But I'd still like to try speaking with her. It's important."

Diana looked away, clearly thinking over her options. Then she looked back. "I…I'm sorry, but I don't feel that…I'm not sure I'd be comfortable enough for that…" The woman chewed on her lip worriedly, crow lines sharp as she scrunched her face in concern. "I do want her to come out though…I'm worried, for her and her pokemon. The poor dears aren't meant to be kept confined for so long…" Her face lit up with a sudden thought, and she turned back to him firmly. "I can't let you inside," she said, "But, Lu--Moon's room, it's diagonal to this entrance. She has a window there. Try getting her attention that way?"

"Hey, that's a plan!" Kukui said. Diana smiled lightly at him. "I'll leave you to yourself, then. Thank you, cousin." He bounded off the porch, rounding the house. Diana had given him an idea.

The window in the back came down to his shoulders, and he couldn't see inside the darkened room. He rapped at the glass anyways, waiting for movement or sound in response. None came. He rapped again, longer and louder. Still nothing. Still, he hadn't come all this way, cleared out his afternoon, just to give up at that. He put both closed hands on the window, and began rapping at it continuously. Several minutes passed, and his knuckles would be very sore for some time, when--

The window was thrown open suddenly, and he nearly rapped right into Moon's stomach. "What the fuck do you want, Kukui," she spat. Her eyes blazed with a purple flame. It had been a long time since he'd seen her without her colored contacts. He'd forgotten how captivating they were, how much emotion and force they could impart. Currently, all of that emotive force came in the form of hostility. He braced himself for what was sure to be a difficult conversation.

"Alola to you too, cousin," he said with as much cheer as he could muster. He made the executive decision to ignore the foul language, spat in such a high-pitched voice. "I was hoping to talk to you about your Trial progress."

"Find another champion and fuck off," she replied curtly.

He was surprised--no one apart from Hala and Olivia had actually heard him talk about his intentions for Moon. "Why do you think I want to make you the champion? Actually, how do you know about the League? It hasn't even been formally announced yet."

"You're pretty damn transparent, you know," she replied. "I've heard Hala talking about all the paperwork he has to fill out." Damnit Hala, what were you doing talking to Diana about that, Kukui thought. "And I know you want me to be the champion because…" She hesitated. "The way you and Hala look at me. The way you keep pushing me to do shit like the Dome, or meet people like your wife. The way you talk about how, internationally, Alola isn't seen as a big deal. You need a strong champion, and you think that's going to be me."

"I do," Kukui replied. "Don't you want to be known as the strongest? You sure battle that way."

"Do you even know why Diana and I are here," she hissed. He didn't but before he could respond, she continued. "It doesn't matter. You know, I was planning on using you anyways, you and your fucking ambitions to put me on a polished pedestal. You're a damn selfish man, so I thought I'd return the favor."

Kukui was reeling. Moon's words reflected those of Burnette, the night after he and the girl had first met. This child, she was too sharp, too smart. He had already know that, but now, with her accusing, burning eyes staring into him, he found any resistance he'd built gone. "If both of us benefit, though, is that so wrong?" he found himself asking.

Moon snorted. "You decided on your own that I would benefit. I decided that it would benefit my ambitions. It doesn't make either of us better people."

"No, it doesn't," he agreed, façade of gregariousness finally dropped. It was refreshing, being able to talk so frankly to someone, even if that someone was probably four and a half feet tall. "And that's okay. I'm sorry, cousin. I never asked you about what you wanted, I just assumed that with your talent, it would be what you'd want." He was surprised at the earnestness of his apology, and he felt her mood shift slightly.

"It's okay, though, if you keep using me," he said, forcing himself to look into her eyes. Her brows were raised, disdainful appraisal emanating from her every pore. Still, he continued. "I don't care what I have to do, so long as I get what I want at the end. And, more than anything, I want a strong League, the strongest the world has ever seen. I still think you and your pokemon would be better than anyone when it comes to accomplishing that."

"You're probably not wrong," she said dryly.

"Whatever you want, whatever I can do, I'll do it for you. Anything. Just, please. Continue the Trials. Become as strong as we both know you can be."

Her eyes clouded, and she began chewing on her lip, much like Diana had done earlier. "Why don't you want to continue," he finally asked. "Whatever problem you have, I'll help you destroy it."

"…Some stuff happened," she said, infuriatingly vague. "I saw something that…well, I'd prefer not to think about it. Didn't Hau say something to Hala?"

He had no idea something had happened between them. "No, he hasn't said anything that wasn't about Malasadas since he left." If whatever had driven her to her room had been a single event, and not a wider fear, then he had a chance. A thought occurred to him. "You know, if you don't get back out there soon, Hau will probably end up becoming the champion."

"If that's what happens if I'm not around, you deserve him," she retorted acidicly. Still, she had grimaced at that--he knew he was close.

"And you have to get back out there. You can't stay inside forever. Your pokemon can't be happy. When's the last time any of them were let out of their balls?" She winced at that. Clearly, she'd felt guilt over what her self-imposed exile had done to her team. "Come with me. I'll give you a lift to the next island. They have a really good sushi place, yeah? We can talk, figure out a way to make this work."

She looked at him, then away. "Anything, huh?" She was silent, then turned back. "Okay," she sighed. "You're probably right about getting back into it. But I think I'm tired of thinking. At least for now."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot may speed up, but my output is probably going to slow down. I have about three chapters left in the buffer, and I've only been trying to put something up when I finish a new chapter, but I'm conflicted over the timeline--how I want to present parts of the story, when and where to put explanations, etc.--to the point where I can't write at the same breakneck pace. This chapter was actually supposed to be about twice as long, but the conversation I wrote in the second half would be better delivered elsewhere, I think.
> 
> Anyways, our first repeat non-Moon perspective. How bout that. Kukui, he could be described as "determined", but I think he's better explained as "would do anything to get the job done". In that respect, he and Moon are pretty similar. 
> 
> BTW your comments give me life, thank you so much to everyone who has been commenting/reading!


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kukui loses his appetite

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS MENTIONS OF GORE AND VIOLENCE. It also has important backstory. I'll summarise what happened in the next chapter's beginning notes.

His boat had been tuned up in remarkably short order--within the same day of his tense conversation with Moon. He had picked her up the next day to send her onward, but she didn't speak much during the long trip to Ula'ula. Kukui didn't mind. Although she'd put her contacts back in, he didn't want to face even the lesser form of her gaze. Besides, she'd given him plenty to think about. He wondered what had happened a week ago, that shook her so thoroughly. He wondered what had to happen to a child to make them grow up so quickly, so thoroughly. He wondered why she could see through everything and everyone so easily. He wondered what she was going to ask for.

  
They had seperated at the island, Moon to her trials, and Kukui to the League site. Then he'd been thrown to the next thing, then the next. Despite the rush Kukui's life had become, he occasionally cast his thoughts back to his promise to her. Had she remembered? Was she going to continue? Soon, a week had passed, but before it slipped his mind entirely, a text asked that he meet her at the Ula'ula docks. He sped over, curiosity and apprehension renewed.  
When he arrived at the island, he noticed her expression. "Why do you look like that?"

  
"Like what?" She aimed her small smile and empty eyes at him. To anyone else she'd look like just another trial-goer; to Kukui, knowing who she usually was, it was only frightening.

  
"You look, I dunno, like just another innocent kid trainer."

"Good. That's what I'm going for," she replied in a voice devoid of its usual edge. "I stand out less this way."

  
"Suit yourself, cousin," he replied, and led them to the restaurant. It wasn't exceptionally busy; the dinner rush hadn't quite begun. He scanned the crowd, but it didn't seem that Nanu was dining out tonight. "Just the two of us, yeah?" he told the hostess.

  
"Somewhere set apart, if you could," Moon chimed in. Kukui looked at her, but the hostess just smiled and led them to a quiet corner near one of the paper screens.

  
They quickly settled in, ordering a variety of rolls, before lapsing into silence. Kukui didn't quite know what to say, for once. Moon had her hands clasped in front of her face, gaze drifting around the restaurant. She was clearly struggling to put words together. He decided to give her that time, and very soon, that decision was rewarded.

  
"None of what I say is to leave this restaurant," she began, staring directly into him. She had dropped her childish façade, instead looking more serious than Kukui had ever seen a child.

  
"Okay."

  
"If you repeat what you hear, it's not that I won't agree to be champion," she continued, ignoring him. "It's that I won't be able to anymore. The decision will be taken away from me."

  
"Why is that," he asked.

  
"Because, Kukui. Diana and I didn't just move to Alola. We were placed here, by the IP, under their witness protection program."

  
His heart skipped a beat. That explained why she had begun using a different name when she set out travelling. "Is this really the best place to discuss this?" He looked around nervously. No one seemed to be looking at them.

  
"Calm down. If you look anxious, that just draws attention to us. Crowded places are better, anyways. More chatter makes it harder to overhear. I was considering talking to you on the boat, but sound carries too far over water."

  
Kukui nodded. What kind of child thinks like that? He didn't know how she kept surprising him like that. A thought came to him, and he blanched again. "We can't make you the champion, can we. They'd televise your image across the world."

  
"I know," she replied evenly. "But we're going to do it anyways."

  
"Whoever is after you, though, they'll know where you are."

  
"That's what I want. I want him to find me."

  
"What? You're kidding, right?" But her face was as unhumorous as he had ever seen.

  
"Not at all. I'm going to become strong. I'm going to become champion. And I'm going to make sure he finds me."

  
She quieted as the waitress brought over a platter full of sushi, laying them down in front of the two. Kukui was glad for the interruption; he could barely wrap his mind around the insanity Moon was laying down. After the waitress left, and they were alone, he spoke up. "Moon, you're not an idiot. I know that. So explain to me what the hell you're thinking."

  
She was quiet, chewing some sashimi slowly. Her face had stiffened. "The man after us is my father," she began. "It's complicated, but I'll just say that Diana isn't my mother. My father killed my mother. In front of me. Kukui, your mouth is hanging open. Eat something, or people will stare." He couldn't feel his face, so he assumed what she said was true, and he mindlessly grabbed a piece of something from the nearest plate and began chewing.

  
Moon continued, not looking at him. "My mother, Diana and I, we discovered that he…well, let's just say the three of us felt we were in danger. So we ran. We managed to get away from him, and due to…luck, we were immediately put under the IP's protection. They didn't catch him, though, obviously. He's…a difficult man to pin down. Again, it's complicated."

  
"Your mother was alive when you went into Witness Protection?"

  
"Well, we weren't under the full Witness program. Just under their surveillance, more or less. We resettled, in Unova, near Castelia City. We shared an apartment wall with an IP agent. Lived there for almost two years. They helped Mother find a job, and started helping Diana and us get an education. We thought we were safe." Her expression darkened, and she fell silence. When she resumed her story, her voice was low and strangely empty of emotion.

  
"The three of us, we went out together, to Lostlorn Forest, just to enjoy nature. He found us there, and attacked us. Restrained us. And gutted my mother in front of us."

  
Kukui couldn't think. Was trying to process what he was hearing. His mouth was probably open again. He grabbed another piece of sushi and tried to chew it.

  
"My father, he…he enjoyed what he did to her. Enough that he didn't notice when Diana and I got loose and ran. The trees, they were confusing, we…we got lost, in a part of the forest I'd never noticed before. We didn't have any pokemon. We could only run, until we found our way out."

  
"And then they put you in Witness Protection," Kukui concluded.

 

"Actually, no," she said bitterly. "They didn't put us in the full program until after he nailed mother's uterus to the apartment building and stuck her ovaries in the outgoing mail." She looked up, and her expression cleared for a moment. "Oh, I'm sorry, maybe I should've really discussed this on the boat. Or at least after dinner." Kukui wondered exactly what shade of green he was.

 

"That's…awful. And specific."

  
"My father is a step beyond misogynistic. He believes women should be chaste, demure, and softspoken. Just seeing women acting independently would make him incredibly angry. The fact that the three of us left him, when we 'belonged' to him, well. There's nothing worse to him. He had to find us, and destroy us, to eliminate the shame we'd brought him."

  
"So when he sees you become champion, there's no way he won't come straight here," Kukui said queasily.

  
"Yes."

  
"And you want that to happen."

  
A fire lit in Moon's eyes. "It needs to happen. The IP will never find him otherwise."

  
"Just because they haven't so far doesn’t mean it's not going to happen," he said, but Moon was shaking her head.

  
"They're not actively searching for him. At least, not effectively. He's extremely difficult to pin down, and more importantly to them, he's been seemingly quiet for the past eight years. They keep moving us regardless, just to be safe, but according to them, there's been no sign of him. They think he's calmed down, that he's not actively pursuing Diana and I."

  
"…The man you described doesn't seem like the type of man to calm down."

  
"He isn't, and he hasn't. The IP thinks he's gone dormant. I think…I think he hasn't stopped." Moon, for the first time in the conversation, looked unsettled, ill. "Diana and I personally wronged him, but that won't stop him from attacking any woman that doesn't fit his narrow standards. And trainers, they're gone for long periods of time, off the map, and plenty go missing all the time."

  
"Have you told them?" Kukui asked, aghast. "Does the IP know he's probably out there…murdering female trainers?"

  
"I have. They said they would've noticed if a serial killer became active. And that his modus operandi would involve the…the dismemberment of his victims, and the placement of their pieces in public areas. Like he did to Mother. But he only did that to her body because it was her, because it was Diana and I. He was sending a specific message to us. He wouldn't do that to just anyone."

  
"You told them that, too? And they still didn't believe you?"

  
"They said they'd look into it. That was five years ago." When Moon was seven? Kukui's heart wrenched at the idea of an even smaller child desperately trying to convince the IP of the danger.

  
"So…you want to become champion to draw him out?"

Moon's eyes lit up again. "Exactly. I'll be strong, overwhelming, and loud. Too loud for him to ignore."

  
Kukui thought for a moment. "Would the IP even let you become champion, though?"

  
"I've already discussed it with my main Kanto contact. He believes that, given my name change and appearance overhaul, that I'd fly under the radar. The idiot," she scoffed. "I think he's under the impression that this Alola league will be tiny, inconsequential. That news of it, and of me, won't get to wherever he's hiding. And you and I, I think we can both agree that we have no intention of being quiet."

  
"You're right," Kukui said slowly. "So, are you going to wait until you start making noise to ask for their protection?"

  
"I'm not going to ask for their help at all," she said firmly. "Not because they're incompetent--they are--but because he'll be less likely to come after me if I'm surrounded by agents 24/7. I need to give the appearance of vunerability, make him think he has a chance. That's where you come in, Kukui. That's what I want from you. To be vigilant with me. The framework of the League will be perfect for guiding him directly into a well-planned trap. Do you think you can do that?"

  
Kukui stared at her. She stared right back. She would do it, he realized, with or without his help. She had been planning to do it without his help. How long had she been planning this? A twelve-year-old girl, alone against a serial killer. And she was so small…the thought of what she was exposing herself to made him queasy. Even if he backed her up, could he really live with himself, if he let the child face such unimaginable danger?

  
"Moon…I can't promise you anything right now," he finally said. "I'll…I'll need to give this some thought, yeah? You've put a lot out there. I'll need time."

  
"I understand," she said, but there was disappointment in her eyes. "I'll complete the Ula'ula trials, but by then I'll expect your answer, okay?"

  
"Okay, cousin. Yeah. I'll let you know."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! I'm not dead. Instead, I got a job, a few medical problems, and a metric assload of anxiety to work through. (I also accidentally posted the next chapter as this chapter. Oops.) (also I completely forget how formatting works)
> 
> This story is building up to something. I started it because I had a really specific idea that I wanted to build a road to. A few months ago, though, the reality of where I was going set in. I'm not going to change the ultimate destination of this story--again, literally everything in this story is written with the presumption of its very specific end--but it occurred to me that the nature of that destination is 100% guaranteed to upset and anger some readers. There's also not really a good way to tag that ending--it ruins all the delicious suspense and surprise I've been trying to craft--so I'm stuck leading readers blindly to a conclusion for which they might react extremely negatively.
> 
> Ultimately, though, I've done my best to telegraph that end. I cannot change how people feel about it, and I don't think any story should not be told for such a reason. This is all the warning I'm going to give in that specific regard. I *do* plan to explicitly give warnings ahead of particularly visceral chapters, like I did here, with summaries afterwards, so people can just...avoid what they need to. That's all I'll be able to do, I think, to help readers decide if they want to continue with me.
> 
> On the topic of slow-ass updates, I'm still busy irl, and I'm not sure I'll be able to update with any amount of regularity. I do plan to finish this, though. I really do apologize for the wait. There are at least two more chapters written out after this, and I have the entire story roadmapped. It's just a matter of getting there. I promise I will.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Guzma's socks get wet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Summary of last chapter:
> 
> Moon and Kukui had a conversation. Moon told him that she and Diana are sisters; their mother had been killed by their psychotic father years ago. He is probably still actively killing female trainers out on their journeys, but the IP doesn't have the resources or interest in confirming and containing him. Moon plans to use the spotlight of the Alola champion position to lure him to her, and she wants Kukui to assist with her trap. Kukui knows she will act, regardless of his cooperation, but he still needs to think it over.

"Why is it always so FUCKING WET," Guzma roared at the sky. The sky answered with a low rumble of thunder, and more rain. Bullshit, such bullshit, he thought as he tried to pull his shoe out of the mud. He succeeded instead in pulling out his foot, and he couldn't stop himself before falling into more mud. He cursed loudly as he got back up and dug out the shoe. He just couldn't catch a fucking break, could he.

Eventually, shoe replaced, he continued his rage-filled march down Route 17. He passed many of his grunts, slowly making their way back home for the evening. Most of them were empty-handed, again. One of them had a fucking yungoos, had the fucking gall to look happy about it. A yungoos. Common as shit, and way less useful. Complete opposite of what Miss Lusamine had ordered them to look for. He pulled at his hair, storming into the entrance to the meadow, before taking a sharp left. Surrounded by idiots. But that's probably just what he got, recruiting specifically for kids who hadn't had the chance to finish school.

His anger only began to subside when he entered the ruins surrounding the Lake of the Moone. Not that he was over it--he wasn't fucking over anything that had happened these past two weeks--but even an angry piece of shit like himself could appreciate the calm his surroundings had.

It's not like he expected the weird cloud--"Nebula," Lusamine had corrected, but fuck her, it was a space cloud with eyes--to actually be here. Lusamine had told him it was probably with someone, and no one ever came to the Lake. Still, all his pansy-ass grunts were too scared to get too near to the Lake, so it was up to big bad Guzma to actually check the place. Of course, it also helped that it was isolated and quiet.

He circled the area, checking behind bushes and rocks, feeling like he was playing a shitty game of tag--he was fucking 24, fuck tag--before determining, no, the stupid cloud was definitely not here. He sat, then, picking at the slowly-drying mud on his pants, thinking.

Apparently the freaky little shitstain that had been terrorizing his grunts was still on Ula'ula. It made it much harder for his blue boys and pink punks to move around in search for the cloud thing. He scowled, growling. It didn't help that the little fuck had humiliated him in front of at least a dozen grunts and Plumes, back at the gardens.

He thought back. He'd been grandstanding, stirring up the oh-so-delicate general population, when fucking Kukui, the shirtless piece of shit, had just come walking through with his stupid fucking smile. Guzma had always hated the older man, even as a child. Such a goody two-shoes, so smart, ooh, skipping grades, getting selected for the oh-so-prestigious professorship, oooooh. Fucker. Guzma had actually been happy to see the shirtless wonder--finally, a chance to pop him good in the jaw, ruin his face for his pretty wife--when Kukui had deflected to the child that accompanied him.

The girl had pissed him off pretty good just to start. A vacant smile. A perfectly happy child, who'd probably had a perfectly happy life, personally escorted around by Cockui himself. He'd drawn himself to his full height--a grand 6'4", although he definitely didn't mention it all the time--and had been pleased to see her draw back with fear. She sure was tiny. Was she even old enough to do all the trial shit?

He'd told her as such, and she'd responded by thrashing him six ways to Sunday. He'd opened with Golisopod's First Impression, but it barely scraped her weird tentacle thing. It had scattered poisonous spikes, then she'd withdrawn it, sending out this freakish metang. "It's new to the team. I just need to put it through its paces, get a good feel for its potential," she'd had the gall to say as it practically tore Ari and Pod apart. "Thank you for the opportunity; trying new things with new pokemon is very important, and you've been perfect for that." She had smiled with all her teeth, like she was trying to intimidate him--HIM! The prissy, spoiled little shit thought she was scary enough to scare the leader of Team Skull himself!

Guzma's growl turned into a roar as he smashed his fist into the rock below him. It's not that he didn't want to punch through Kukui's stupid face, or crush the brat and drive her to tears. It's just that, to his massive displeasure, he'd allowed himself to become complacent. He'd been terrorizing the people of the island for years now. He'd been personally approached by Lusamine herself to enforce her will on the islands. He was strong. Except a shitty little brat had thrashed him, publicly.

He got off the stone, shoving his hands in his pockets, and began walking back the way he'd first came from. He had trained plenty, these past two weeks. The next time he saw her, she'd regret ever leaving home.

* * *

 

When the grunts told him, about the short, dark-skinned kid, who had appeared after Guzma left, who had torn through them on her way to Po Town, he didn't make any attempt to restrain his toothy grin. The opportunity had come so soon, the little shit bringing it right to his own doorstep. It didn't matter, he thought. She wouldn't matter after he found her.

He had hoped, as he continued, that none of his grunts would manage to beat her. After all, almost everyone was home for the evening. She'd been able to beat one or two at a time, but not nearly thirty. And yet, with increasing irritation, he found more grunts, avoiding his gaze, pointing him further along the path. Would it even be worth it, he wondered? To beat her if her team was exhausted? Ah, but it wasn't just beating, it was crushing; besides, when had he pretended to be proud? Besides, all this battling had to have slowed her down.

Except there he was, passing through Po Town gates, and she wasn't there. Passing by the car barricades, and she wasn't there. Not on the first floor of the House. Not even the second. Really? A new flavor was added to his emotional maelstrom. All his grunts, dumb as they may be, were under his protection. His stupid, sweet kids. He had taken them all in, from terrible situations, and the tiny bitch had crushed them like they were nothing. It burned him, tearing and acrid, and he turned to one of the guards, slumped against the wall.

"Where is she," he snarled at the grunt. She jumped, not meeting his eyes.

"I--I think, um, I think she's in your room. Boss," she squeaked. "We…couldn't stop her."

"Are you fucking serious?" He didn't wait for an answer. He didn't march, not while trying to navigate the slippery roof tiles, but back inside on the landing he charged forward, throwing open the door to his room.

And there she was. Legs thrown over the arm of his thrown, head resting on her hand, like she fucking owned the place. His rage flared.

"Ohoho. It's not every day someone comes straight to me for a beating," he sneered. Her eyes were closed, but she shifted, and he knew she was awake. "What the fuck are you here for, princess?"

"A child's Yungoos was stolen. I've come to retrieve it." She sounded bored. She still wasn't looking at him. Every little thing she did had him boiling inside.

"Oh, how sweet of the high and mighty princess, to come all the way for some snot-nosed brat's worthless pokemon. What the fuck is WRONG WITH YOU," he roared.

She still didn't move, didn't twitch at his explosion. "The child had nothing but that yungoos. Weak it may be, but a bond can't be replaced."

Guzma couldn't believe what he was hearing. "You idiot, do you understand where you are? Do you not understand what a fucking gang is? Did daddy never tell you about big bad Team Skull? Or did he just buy you the best pokemon he could find and set you loose on the islands?"

She didn't respond. Time stretched, and although his rage blinded him to the sensation, the hair on the back of his neck rose in alarm.

"Are you speaking from experience?" She was slowly moving, her legs coming down to the floor, her spindly hands grasping the ends of the arms of the throne. She still hadn't opened her eyes, couldn't be bothered to look at him.  
"Of course not, you idiot. I had nothing--nothing!" His rage was boiling over, he couldn't stop himself from speaking, unloading on the shitstain. "Nothing except for the occasional golf club to the backside, ha! But that stopped, after Pod and I became strong. And we became strong, kid, destruction in human form, all on our own. We bled for it, suffered for it, but now, we're strong, stronger than anyone, stronger than you, you puffed-up piece of shit. You've never had to struggle for anything in your life, have you. Well, let me give you a crash course in how the real world works."

He didn't notice, in the low light, until he had finished, how stiff she had become. He stared at her, breathless, eager for her to send out whatever pathetic thing she had, ready to beat her down to hammer in his word.

Then, she opened her eyes.

Somehow, with only the candles in the room, and the faraway lights from the hallway illuminating Guzma from behind, they were bright, blazing purple and blue and every potential shade inbetween, the coldest fire he'd ever seen. They restrained him, trapped him, tore through him, reduced him to a tall man in worn baggy clothes. He remembered, weakly, back to the garden--her eyes had been grey and shallow, her smile unchanging, another stupid trialgoer. There was no smile now. Only the smallest possible frown, and her eyes, oh god, the way she looked at him, like he was shit on her shoe.

He had always joking referred to the chair as a throne, but suddenly he realized. A throne was just a place for a Queen to rest as they passed judgement.

He just wanted her to look away, but her gaze remained fixed as she spoke. "Well then, Guzma," she said quietly, every note laced with malice. "Educate me."  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like pointing out--the Lillie & Moon relationship tag is meant in the traditional sense--"&" being used to indicate their friendship, rather than the "\" used for a romance. Sorry it took 11ish chapters for me to realize that might be confusing or misleading =_=
> 
> Lots of people like to write Guzma as a tough guy with a heart of gold. I don't disagree, but I do think people tend to jump wayyyy too quickly to teddy-bear levels of softness.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Guzma accepts poisoned handouts.
> 
> contents include implied albeit undepicted sexual encounter.

His shoe sunk into the mud. Guzma stared at it blankly, halted in his walk, until his predicament slowly sunk in. Instead of tugging harshly, though, he eased his foot back and forward, prying it out of the vacuum. It came free with a squelching pop, and he held it in the air, heavy with mud that refused to let go. It took him another moment, but he eventually started shaking it in the air, lightening the load.

He blinked, and ah, he was much further down the road. How long had he been walking? He didn't care.

Another breath, and he was on the shabby speedboat Lusamine had given him, hidden in a small cove just past the old fart's police shack. Some part of him tried to bring attention to how badly he'd failed her, how unlikely it was that she'd bring the comfort he so desperately needed, but the need won out.

Ah, he had made it to Aether Paradise, the small rear entrance as always, an elevator straight to her mansion. He'd never been in the wider areas of the facility. Bad for image and all. He had never wanted to, anyways. With all the mud he inevitably got on his shoes from the rainy coast, he'd just spread his filth all over the pristine floors.

He shelled himself of the mud-encrusted clothes before entering the mansion proper and, nude, walked inside. The clothes went straight into the laundry--a pang of guilt shot through him; there were no laundry facilities for his grunts--and he went straight to an enormous, multi-headed shower, white and gilt in stark contrast to his grey grease and muddy limbs. He turned it on, feeling another pang of guilt as he turned up the heat, as high as he could. There hadn't been plumbing in Po Town for years. Some grunts made do with wet rags, he knew, but even more spent time outside and wrote off soap. None of them had likely enjoyed a hot shower since they'd come to him. He idly thought of the bank account, set up in Lusamine's dead husband's name, from which Team Skull's funds came and went. It was running low, he knew, but someday, maybe there'd be enough in there to at least reconfigure the busted piping in the town.

He stood in the shower like this, lost in his own distracting thoughts, failing even to scrub at himself. The minutes passed by. How long had he been here? The water wasn't cooling down at all.

Suddenly, slender white arms appeared around his chest. He was too exhausted to start at her sudden appearance; he hadn't heard her at all.

"Good afternoon," she breathed, formal as always. "I was wondering when my big, bad Guzma would appear."

He stiffened, and although exhausted, his body still felt a sluggish flair of fear. He wasn't big or bad. He'd failed her. Lost to a child. She didn't need him if he wasn't strong. Panic rose in his chest. But--but if she'd heard, she would've already started, right? Maybe she didn’t know yet. He needed to play it cool.

"Sorry for the wait," he eventually gurgled. "Didja miss me?"

"How could I, when you've brought me my heart's desire?" He felt her nuzzle into his back, and frowned at that. Her heart's desire? His dick was good, but not that good, and lately he hadn't even had that opportunity. No, Lusamine had been completely consumed, had been all and only about the fucking cloud--oh. Oh. They'd done it, hadn't they? They'd done it, while he had been…preoccupied. His body soared with giddiness.

"Remind me who brought the cloud--"

"Nebula. Cosmog."

"--whatever--the cosmog in? I should reward them when we get back to Po Town." He needed to know what had happened while he wasn't himself.

"It was your lieutenant, Plumeria herself," Lusamine replied. "Really, Guzma, I must applaud your plan. Drawing away that annoying trainer, distracting her while your team captured the prize? Ah, you likely haven't had the chance to hear, but they also detained my itinerant daughter at the same time. You've never done so well," she purred, and he felt the vibrations through her wet chest, pressing into his back. He shivered.

"All in a day's work, Madam Prez," he replied. Internally, he was ecstatic. Lusamine didn't have to know about his failures. She'd never have to know. He turned, finally, lifting her arms and pinning her to the wall. She smiled back, alluring and irresistable. Guzma closed in to claim his prize.

* * *

 

"Ah, you'll be wanting your due, correct?"

Lusamine was elegantly pulling her two-toned tights back on. They'd eventually made it to her ridiculously oversized bed, and Guzma, exhausted, had yet to move. He never stayed long, but it was just too comfortable, too warm, to make his exit quiet yet. His mind, still foggy, tried to understand what she'd said. Reward? Wasn't that what he'd had just now?

Lusamine had her dress on, but was struggling to reach the zipper in the small of her back. Guzma moved to help her, hand stretched out, but it was slapped away. "Don't touch me," she snapped. Ah, that's right. Strictly professional fucking. Professional. Her words snapped into place.

"Yeah. Yeah, we did good this time, huh. The pokemon and the kid, at the same time."

At the reminder of the day's events, Lusamine instantly became giddy again. Zipper up, she giggled as she stood and twirled through the room. Guzma, still mesmerized, could only watch.

"Oh, yes! Guzma, finally! Everything I've been working for! Everything I've dreamed of! For ten years, and finally, it's all coming together!" She giggled, bouncing over to a cabinet, and reached inside to pull out a decorated package. "You'll have your due, all of it and more, my Guzma." He shuddered as she approached him. Her Guzma. She'd never called him that way before. "Here, a bonus," and she tossed the package at him. "I won't be needing it any more."

He opened it, and shock ran through him. "This…are you sure, Madam Prez?" he said weakly. There had to be at least thirty of the blue candies, each individually and delicately wrapped. Did they even sell them like this? It had to have been a gift, a very fine one, from some dignitary or business partner. And she had just casually given it to him. Did she really not care about the value of the candies? Did value have so little meaning to her? Or did she give it to him because it was him? He knew it wasn't true, but some pathetic part of him couldn't help but wonder

A flash of memory ran through him--just hours earlier, was it?--of a small monster, tossing him Max Revives, over and over, sickening smile on its face. "Again," it had hissed. "I'm not sure we've learned," echoing as the crystals settled on the floor. More handouts. Not strong enough to--his face flashed with something.

"You'll take it, Guzma," Lusamine interrupted his thoughts sharply. Uncharacteristically, she had noticed his expression.

 "I will need you at your fullest potential. My foolish daughter was travelling with that trainer, after all. I met them, you know, only a few weeks ago. She seemed much like my daughter. Too headstrong, too rash, too prone to ignoring the wisdom of her elders. She's likely to come here, and when she does, I'll need you and your team to be fully mobilized."

Her words made Guzma's blood, hot from the shower and the sex, suddenly turn cold. He remembered their earlier conversation. Apparently he'd distracted someone while the girl had been taken. Someone headstrong. Someone who Lusamine, however unconsciously, knew to be afraid of.

"Moon," he said, and Lusamine snorted.

"What a terrible name," she grumbled. Guzma didn't even have the presence of mind to remind her of Gladion's predicament. Moon was going to come here. Moon was going to be angry. Would she look at him, with those horrible, illuminated indigo eyes? He didn't think he could stand another second under her gaze. He hadn't eaten in a long time, but suddenly he felt sick, horribly sick.

He looked at Lusamine. She was pacing in circles, hair swirling around her, and her eyes stared at nothing as she grinned and whispered excitedly to herself. He had never seen her like this, but he had to try. She was, by far, the lesser of two evils. "That Moon, she's just coming for your kid, right?" he said. Lusamine didn't seem to hear him, but he continued. "If we let your kid go, she'd leave, right? You only wanted the clo--cosmog, didn't ya?"

Lusamine whipped around, eyes wide, breathing harshly. Guzma was taken aback. Lusamine marched over to him, grabbed his jaw in her hand. Her nails dug into his cheeks. She was surprisingly strong, for such an old woman. Guzma couldn't avoid her eyes. They didn’t compare to Moon's. Instead of looking through Guzma, he felt they let him look through her. And what he saw was not the composed, elegant woman he'd known.

"Children need to respect their elders," she hissed, spittle landing on his face. "Children need to accept their parents' love. Lillie cannot leave until she understands that. Moon will learn that. And you will enforce that." She threw his face away, nails raking his chin, before spinning back to the door. "Be ready, Guzma. They'll be here soon," she said, and left.

Guzma looked back to the package she'd offered, almost forgotten on the bed. The enormous bed, the warm water, the bank account. He thought of Moon. He thought of Lusamine. And he thought of his grunts, cold in the rain. The last is what finally moved him. His kids, they needed him, they needed this, and he'd face down the devil again if he had to. He grabbed the candies, moving to Lusamine's personal PC in the corner of the room, withdrawing extra pokemon not present in Po Town. Then, he quickly busied himself with using every damn candy in the box.

* * *

 

It wasn't enough. He knew it wouldn't be.

He was too tired, too exhausted, and even though he could be here, on the steps of the mansion, fighting with his grunts, he couldn't be strong enough for them. He had failed them.

And yet, they were still fighting, against an opponent they knew not even their boss could beat down. His eyes burned; it had been years since he'd last cried, and he wasn't sure if he even could anymore. His kids deserved so much better than a fake thug like himself.

"Big G, I've heard from Faba. The brats just came up from some labs underground. They'll be here soon," Plumeria said quietly beside him.

"Thanks, Plumes," he replied in a monotone, and the younger woman peered at him.

"G, what's going on," she asked. "Did that Aether bitch fuck the fight right outta you?"

"That's not it," he said, and her eyes narrowed further. Plumes had never liked Lusamine, had liked it even less when Guzma began sleeping with her. Don't shit where you sleep, she'd said. He wished he had listened. Plumes always had her head on straight. "Plumes, I'm sorry."

"What? For what?" Every word out of his mouth made her more alarmed. He couldn't blame her. Had he ever apologized, for anything, ever? He laughed.

"You were right. I've fucked up. This, all of this…it was a mistake, and our kids are the ones suffering for it."

"Guzma…"

"We needed the money," he continued. "You and I, we ate one meal every other day, and our kids was still starving. I didn't care what happened to me, so long as they could at least eat enough, keep themselves clothed, keep the generators and space heaters running. I thought it'd end with me. But it didn't, did it?"

"Guzma…we aren't done yet," Plumes said beside him. She looked so frightened, and Guzma suddenly regretted unloading on her. "We still got us, don't we? And the Aether bitch, she did pay you for this, right? We can cut clean after we get off this island, find a different honey pot, or maybe just go straight, you know? Po Town is a lot of land, we could make it into something…" She drifted off.

"Maybe you're right," he sighed, but he didn't believe it. "But the prez, she still needs us right now. She's not right, I think. Something's finally come loose. And…I can't just leave her that way."

Plumeria was silent beside him. Then…"Do you love her?" came her whisper. She wasn't looking at him.

"I love how she needs me," he said back quietly.

"We need you too, G. I need you." Plumes was crying.

He couldn't reply. Couldn't tell her exactly how unnecessary he had realized he was. She'd see for herself soon enough. He could see three small figures walking up the treelined path, quickly coming into view. Moon led them, striding with determination, eyes fixed on Guzma. Her eyes were grey again, shaded by a black flatbill cap, and he was intensely grateful for it. He didn't think he'd be able to stand another session with her illuminated indigo eyes again. Beside her, a caramel-colored boy jogged, and Guzma wondered why he was smiling in the middle of all this chaos. To her other side, though…

"Gladion?" What the hell?

"WHERE IS LILLIE," the boy roared. Guzma was taken aback. The little brat had always tried to present himself as aloof and above everything. Guzma and Plumes had teased him for that; everyone knew how easily angered he was, and his tantrums had been cute. But now, that seemed to be gone. Gladion was angry, actually angry, and was making no effort to hide it.

"Inside," Guzma replied. A vague thought told him to keep his mouth shut, but he was too tired, just too tired.

 "Y'know, I kinda liked you, kid. Rejecting your mother, running away, finding your own people…you reminded me of me. I liked that."

"My mother is crazy," he replied. "And I never should have left Lillie with her. That was a mistake. I should've taken her with me…"

"Maybe," Guzma replied wearily.

"What?" replied the unknown boy. "Gladion? What's going on? Your mother?"

"Shut up, Hau," Gladion shot back.

The two boys began to bicker, and Guzma felt some irritation. Here he was, a Team Boss, taking a bunch of bickering brats seriously. Then he looked at Moon again, and remembered. She had been staring silently at him during the entire exchange, but her glare was nowhere near its full power.

Guzma couldn't find it within himself to care. "Come on, kid. Let's get this over with."

"You could just move," she replied, and Guzma looked at Plumes. She was stiff, looking at Moon with fierce eyes. She hadn't given up. He looked behind the trio, and saw his grunts, defeated, lingering in the background. They all looked at him, and even at a distance, he saw the hope in their eyes. His heart plummeted.

"I don't think I can," he said softly. "They can't see me give up."

Moon nodded. "Then let's begin," she said, before releasing the grey mimikyu from earlier. Guzma grabbed Pod's ball, and resigned himself to his fate.

* * *

 

He followed the trio as they entered the mansion. As the young, blond girl, so much like Lusamine, gave Moon a teary hug. He was somewhat surprised when they continued after her rescue--hadn't they only been here for the girl?--but apparently the cloud thing mattered too. The girl called it Nebby. Spoke of it with tears in her eyes. He didn't feel anything anymore, couldn't feel guilty for what he'd put her through.

He followed them, hanging back by the door, as they confronted Lusamine. Watched as Moon destroyed her, pokemon by pokemon, as he knew she would. Behind her, Nebby was struggling, letting out pained cries, each one making Lillie shudder. It didn't seem to really phase Lusamine, though. She only looked behind the children, meeting his eyes, fury pouring from her, hand outstretched. Without a word, he knew what she wanted, and he moved forward, through the small group, to stand by her side. He didn't know what was going to happen, but as long as she needed him, what could he do?

He didn't look at the children. He couldn't look at Moon. He didn't know what she would've expected, but he'd made his decision, and he'd be damned if her eyes broke that. Beside him, Lusamine was still issuing orders to her last pokemon, a bewear, but she had turned to the apparatus behind them, frantically turning dials and flipping switches. Her pokemon took a hard hit, a fire fang from Moon's incineroar, and collapsed, but Lusamine didn’t seem to notice. Instead she cried out triumphantly, and beyond the machine, Nebby screamed.

A blindingly bright light exploded from the creature, and in every direction Guzma felt something shattering. Lusamine ran towards the nexus of the light, and looked back. To her pokemon, still on the ground? To her children? No, Guzma realized, she was looking at him.   
"Come," she commanded.

He looked back. Gladion was holding onto Lillie, who was screaming and struggling against him. The other boy, Hau, wasn't smiling for once, jaw slack. And Moon, she…looked afraid? What?

"Guzma!" he heard behind him, and he turned. It didn't matter, he thought, as he stepped into the light. Wherever they were going, it was a place she couldn't follow. A place where he was still needed. He reached for Lusamine's hand, but before he found it, they were gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fIxInG pLoThOlEs because seriously how the hell could he have leveled up so quickly in the game? I call hax
> 
> and as much as I loathe lusamine x literally anyone I really can't see her and Guzma *not* in a physical relationship while he was under her employ, yanno? She's a manipulator. I doubt she'd've just...not used all the tools at her disposal. Poor Guzma.
> 
> The realism tag is unfounded because there's no way any shower drain used by Lusamine would ever not be completely clogged by her hair.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luna enjoys her hydrocodone and, surprisingly, her conversation.

Moon was vaguely aware of the cold pressing against her back. A muffled, high-pitched noise surrounded her. She was on the ground? Why did she fall asleep on the ground? Her head hurt; she must have slept on it wrong…but the pain was growing, getting louder and louder, drowning out the other noises. Moon decided to go back to sleep.

 

* * *

 

 

When she next awoke, she was somewhere marginally more comfortable than wherever she'd been last. It smelled worse, though. Her eyes itched, but not that badly, like they had in Po Town, where it was bad enough to make her take them out in public. That had been a mistake. She slowly opened her eyes, tearing up as they acclimatized to the light of the room. As she struggled to bring her vision into focus, meaning began to piece itself together. She was smelling…chemicals? Medicine? Hospital smells. She was in a hospital.

"Ah, you're awake," someone said, and she turned to the voice. An older man, in a black jacket, and…

"Red eyes," she croaked weakly.

"Indigo eyes," he shot back calmly. So someone had taken them out? A sluggish bubble of panic appeared.

"Who saw," she groaned. "Eyes. Who saw them. My eyes."

"Just the nurse and I," he replied calmly. "They needed to come out. You obviously wear them too much; your eyes are becoming inflamed. You've been asleep for the better half of a day."

"Why?" She didn't remember what had happened. She'd rushed to rescue Lillie, then rushed to rescue Nebby, then rushed to defeat Lusamine…so much rushing, it all blurred together.

"According to Gladion, you saw the ultra wormhole and passed out. You hit your head on a corner going down, though. Gave yourself a nasty concussion," he reported flatly.

"Oh." Her head still hurt, quite a bit. She couldn't tell how nasty he meant. "Why did I pass out?"

"The wormhole, like I said." She wasn't sure if the man was irritated. His face barely moved.

"No, not that. I mean, it was that, but it wasn't." She struggled to conjure the words she needed. Her head throbbed, and she leaned back, a small moan bubbling out. The man was silent, and she focused on gathering herself before continuing.

"Why would the wormhole make me faint," she asked, now with enough sense to know it was directed mostly at herself. It was the second time she'd done that.

"Ultra wormholes rip apart time and space. It stands to reason that some would be more sensitive to the aftereffects. Especially someone under your circumstances," he said, leaning forward. Huh. She hadn't expected a reply. Then her mind wrapped itself around his words, chugging slowly from sound to meaning to implication.

"Circumstances?" she asked cautiously. The man wasn't looking at her, digging into an old leather wallet instead. He pulled out a card, and handed it to her. She accepted it, feeling strangely nostalgic. Identity validation. This used to be a much more common event in her life.

"Officer Nanu. Level two secrecy clearance," she read numbly. His picture matched, and although his hair was the same shade of non-shade, It had clearly been taken many years ago.

"It used to be level one, back when your files first appeared. I was asked to read over them. I'd been dealing with a similar case at the time. I'm not as active anymore, but they tapped me to be your primary contact. I felt it would be a bad idea, so close to Po Town, though. Although I see you've managed to get yourself into trouble without my help."

She couldn't tell if he was making a joke, but she had to understand. "So you know everything. What is everything?"

"I saw your file about five months after it was created. It went over your history, including how you got here and why you left. Then, when you came here to Alola, I got the level five dossier, which left all the most exciting parts out, but included your sister's mental health situation. Although," and here his eyes were sparkling, "that one didn't include the physical situation."

"Yeah," she replied. "We generally get moved every two years. Probably so no one notices. But I don't remember meeting you…?"

"The original file had photos. And they never actually assigned your case to me; I just looked it over." For the first time in the conversation, he shifted in his seat, looked away from her. He's nervous, the hypervigilant portion of her mind offered. Good to know that still worked. "Is Diana like you?" He didn't look at her as he asked.

"No," Luna replied dully. "The opposite, actually."

"I see," he replied, then settled back, arms crossed. "I'm sorry. Have the brains been looking into why?"

"Back in Kanto they'd take our blood twice a month. Didn't find a damn thing."

"Figures," he muttered. "Not a surprise, really. They don't offer nearly enough to new hires to attract actual talent. Not a damn drop of smarts in the whole HQ. No wonder it's always children bringing down crime orgs." Then he went silent, staring at her. She didn't mind that much. If he already knew everything, then she had nothing to hide, nothing to fear.

"You know, you had me worried. You didn't come find me for your Grand Trial. Then I got a call from Kukui, something about how he couldn't reach you or Lillie or Hau. You know, normal people go to the police when a child is kidnapped," he grumbled.

"Normal people don't keep eight meowths in their living room," she replied, and she could see him twitch a bit at that. How amusing. She'd stepped into the station briefly on her way to Team Skull, in pursuit of a key to the Po Town gates, but had only been greeted by his small purple horde. She'd instead wiggled through a storm grate, just barely small enough to squeeze through.

"Meowths are good," he replied without looking at her. "They don't judge you or anything. And don't change the subject. For someone who's supposed to be keeping their head down, you're sure stirring up a lot of noise."

"Gee, I'm sorry, it's almost as though the local gang and an esteemed international conservation foundation were conspiring together to kidnap pokemon and tear apart time and space. Sure would've been convenient if a certain former agent had been looking into that." She idly wondered what they had her on. Something good, clearly, if she was being this glib with an officer she had only just met.

"Why do you think I hadn't cracked down on Team Numbskull? I knew there was something, I just couldn't nail down anything."

"Really? It was right in front of you. Did you know Guzma smells like Lusamine's shampoo?"

"I never got close enough to check, thanks. Wait, how the hell do YOU know that?"

"She has enough hair that the smell is just everywhere around her, and I sat in his fancy chair when I kicked his ass."

"You TOUCHED that thing? Knowing him, it was probably laced with bedbugs."

"Just adding to the flea collection I got from going into your place."

It was strange. She was smiling, and she thought the far side of Nanu's face hid a  smirk. Diana never bantered with her like this. It was nice. She wondered if this was how Nanu had operated when in the IP, lowering his targets' guard with his personality. What did he want from her? Why was he here?

He must've seen the look on her face, because his eyes hardened. "You want to know why I'm here," he asked

"Yeah," she said, unsurprised at his intuition.

"Can I not be concerned for you?"

"It's unadvised, considering all the concerning things I tend to do."

"Heh," he laughed shortly, but his eyes barely changed. "Lillie's in another room."

"Is she okay?" Luna shot up, then sank back, dizzy. Too soon to move quickly, but the renewed pounding in her head didn't stop her alarm. Lillie, for all she'd been through, was still young and sweet. "What did they do to her?"

"Nothing, nothing," he replied, hands held up. He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. She wondered how feral she must look right now, with Lillie…"Apparently she kept it together until they got you to this clinic. Then she just…fell apart. Stress, overexertion. She's just resting. She was very worried about you, you know."

"I know," Moon replied wearily.

"Anyways, I'm here for all the obvious reasons. You're in a hospital, something strange has happened at Aether, and a bunch of ultra wormholes have sprouted across Alola." He registered Luna's expression at that. "Something about what Lusamine did out there at Aether really tore things up. HQ has asked me to start gathering information while they form a response team. I already got statements from the three kids, but…"

"But you need my perspective. As someone with a history experiencing the wormholes."

"Precisely," he said, leaning back. "Start from the beginning, if you could. From when Lillie was abducted."

So she told him. About returning to the Aether House, burdened with a pokemon and guilt, and finding Lillie gone and the children inconsolable. About Gladion, frantic but determined, rushing them to Aether Paradise. Their discoveries in the labs. The near-crazed fight with Lusamine. And the horrible screams Nebby had let out, the crack in reality, Lusamine and Guzma's exit…Just talking about the wormhole made her stomach twist.

"I saw another wormhole, a few weeks ago, at Aether," she said. Nanu's eyebrows raised to that. "It wasn't nearly as wholly formed. Just a tiny peephole. But whatever she did to Nebby was like tearing the seams with a knife."

"And how does that compare to your ultra wormhole," he asked quietly.

_\--Atop the rounded step pyramid, the moon shining overhead, halved by his blade descending, mom threw herself over  them, and screamed only PLEASE--_

"Ours was sturdy," she said slowly. "It didn't leech as much into our surroundings. It had a distinct edge. The Aether wormholes, just being near them felt like you were inside of them. And…and I swore I could see an end to them. Some other place, on the other side. The connections they formed didn't reach very far, I think. Ours took us a long ways. My guess is that Nebby is…underformed? Too young? The wormholes probably require a great deal of power and finesse to create and keep open, much less make large and stable enough for people to pass through. It probably did that, making them large, at the  expense of keeping everything clean," she finished. Nanu nodded, pensive.

"I see. Now, about the physical sensation of--" He was cut off by a sharp ringing from his hip. He grabbed his phone, then looked at it with consternation. "It's HQ," he told Luna. "They'll be wanting an update. This may take some time…"

"That's fine," Luna replied. "Take all the time you need."

He nodded, and she watched as he left the room. Unseated, he was shorter than she expected, and compact...but yes, his small frame, masked by his strange officer jacket, held quite a bit of refined muscle. Level five her ass. She waited a minute before detaching herself from the various drips and sensors they had attached to her. Her clothes and gear were neatly folded on the desk beside her; she carefully checked that all six members of her team was present and accounted for, before quietly peering out the door. Nanu was nowhere to be seen. She casually made her exit, pulling her black flatbill over her eyes, and made her way down the hall, glancing into each door.

Eventually she reached one, lacking a nameplate yet containing a small lump in the bed. Moving inside, she saw with relief Lillie's tearstained face. She shook the girl's shoulder softly, and saw her eyes flutter open. When they focused on Luna, she gasped, and threw her arms around her.

"Shh, don't make too much noise," Luna said quickly. "I'm probably not supposed to be moving yet."

"Moon! I'm so happy you're okay," Lillie said softly. Then she disentangled herself, moving back to stare at Luna. "What--your eyes, they're--"

"I usually wear contacts. Couldn't find them in the room."

"Oh. Yeah, I could see why. Anyways. Moon," and Lillie's face hardened into something Luna hadn't seen before. "We're going to save my mother."

"What?" _Why,_ Luna almost asked.

"I can't just leave her. You saw her. She…she's lost it, Moon." Lillie's eyes had begun to tear up, but the girl was refusing to let them fall. "She did a lot of bad things, but she's still my mother. She used to be a good one. I need to save her."

"By opening another wormhole?"

"No! But yes, but--Nebby, its…its not moving, it's just quiet in my bag, and I'm worried. Gladion, though, he gave me something, and said to go to Poni Island. And I've been reading a lot, trying to help Nebby, and, and I had some ideas. I don't want to hurt Nebby any more. But…I can't abandon my mother," she finished weakly. "Please help me, Moon. I need your help. Please."

Luna looked at Lillie. She was shaking, almost crying, but her eyes were fiercely bearing into her own. She would not be moved, Luna realized. She would go to Poni alone, struggle to open the wormhole herself, without a pokemon team, with nothing but a comatose space cloud in her bag to help her. Did she even understand the dangers of it all? Of wormholes, of pokemon? Of a young girl travelling alone?

Something was screaming inside of Luna, but she ignored it. Lillie was her friend. If she couldn't face her fear, of an inanimate space-time phenomenon, then there was no way she'd be able to carry out her full plan, to confront the devil himself, she realized.

"Of course, Lillie," she replied. "Of course I'll help you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter I have queued. Expect a delay. I'm so sorry.
> 
> On the bright side, I finally have a natural excuse to include my favorite, and I'd like to sue the internet, for having such soul-crushingly small amounts of Nanu fanworks out there.
> 
> It's hard keeping a steady drip of exposition. I hope I'm pacing it correctly..


End file.
